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THE  "WASHINGTON  OF  CUBA." 
BARTOLOME  MA8SO,  FIRST  PRESIDENT  OF  THE  FREE  CUBAN  REPUBLIC. 


COLUMBIA'S 

WAR  FOR  CUBA 


A  TYPICAL    SUGAR    PLANTATION,  HAVANA  PROVINCE 

A  STORY  OF 

The  Early  Struggles  of  the  Cuban   Patriots,  and  of   all   the  Important 

Events  Leading  Up  to  the  Present  War  Between  the 

United  States  and  Spain  for  Cuba  Libre 


By   H.  ALLEN  TOPPER,  JR. 


P.  B.  BROMFIELD  &  Co. 
BIBLE  HOUSE 

NEW  YORK 


Copyright,  1898,  by  B.  J.  FERNIE 


7/5" 


DEDICATION. 


To  n\y  four  Sisters,  Ariose  syrrjpatriies 
for  tl\e  silfferirig  r\ave  cr\ariged  shadows 
into  silrisriirie,  tr\is  \^orK  is  lovingly  dedi- 
cated. 

H.  fi.  T.f  Jr. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    I. 

CUBA,  THE  PEARL  OF  THE  ANTILLES. 

PAGE 

First  glimpse  of  Cuba — Mistakes  of  Columbus — Its  early  names — Its  strange 
shape — Undeveloped  mineral  treasures — A  rainy  record — The  one  day  of 
snow — A  land  of  trees  and  fruits  and  birds — How  the  island  is  peopled — 
Peninsulars,  Riollos  and  Asiatics  —  Characteristics  of  the  provinces — Nominal 
representation — An  expensive  religion — An  island  in  pawn — Love,  courtship 
and  matrimony  in  Cuba 1 1 

CHAPTER  II. 

AMERICA,   CUBA'S  CHAMPION. 

Abortive  insurrections  of  the  past — American  sympathizers  on  the  roll  of  martyr- 
dom— President  Grant's  indignation — National  conventions  of  both  parties 
sympathetic — Woodford's  effective  protest  against  Weyler — Gen.  Fitzhugh 
Lee's  vigorous  Americanism — Personal  observations  of  United  States  Senators 
— Humane  shrinking  from  the  inevitable  conflict — President  McKinley's 
historical  message — The  Congressional  resolutions — The  ultimatum  sent  to 
Woodford — Woodford's  summary  dismissal — President  McKinley's  call  for 
volunteers — Another  message — War  declared 31 

CHAPTER  III. 

THE  BATTLE  FOR  HUMANITY. 

Incapacity  of  European  journals  to  appreciate  disinterested  interference — The 
United  States  patient  and  forbearing — Offers  of  purchase — Spanish  resent- 
ment—A European  indictment  of  the  oppressor — A  long  series  of  outrages — 
European  powers  deprecate  war — Not  a  war  for  territory — The  nuisance  of 
proximity  to  mediaeval  barbarity — A  vision  of  Anglo-Saxon  comradeship — 
A  poet's  acclaim 67 

CHAPTER  IV. 

WEYLER,  BLANCO  AND  THE  RECONCENTRADOS.—  AUTONOMY  AND  THE 
"MAINE"    DISASTER. 

Attempts  to  crush  the  insurrection  by  brutality — Butcher  Weyler — Personal  esti- 
mate of  the  mar. — His  menacing  manifests — The  infamous  concentration 
order  —  Sugar  planters  provoked— A  fence  of  steel  across  the  island — A 
policy  of  extermination — Driving  in  the  peasants — Direct  responsibility  for 
sixty  thousand  deaths — What  autonomy  meant — DeLome's  insult  to  the 
President — His  recall — Destruction  of  the  "  Maine  " — Verdict  of  the  Board  of 
Inquiry Si 

CHAPTER  V. 

AMERICAN  AND  SPANISH   MILITARY  AND   NAVAL  STRENGTH  COMPARED. 

Spain's  eight  army  corps — A  list  of  Spanish  vessels,  with  their  speed  and  arma- 
ments— Her  reliance  on  her  navy — Disadvantages  of  distance  from  base  of 
supply — Coal  is  king — United  States  ships  and  their  commanders — Elements 
of  strength — An  English  estimate — Rapid  mobilization — The  response  to  the 
President's  call — American  inventive  genius  in  activity — Science  harnessed 
for  war— Electric  bombs  and  flying  torpedoes— Modern  advance  in  speed  .  .  105 

(5) 


6  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   VI. 

CUBA'S  HEROES. 

PAGE. 

Brave,  honest  and  patriotic  men — Maximo  Gomez — A  manly  proclamation — 
Masterly  tactics — Antonio  Maceo — His  brother  Jose — Two  daring  soldiers — 
A  magnanimous  proposal — Calexto  Garcia — Nestor  Aranguren — A  Cuban 
Centurion — Brilliant  capture  of  a  train — President  Masso  and  his  cabinet — 
Once  a  prisoner  in  Morro  Castle — Cisneros  ex-president — His  address  to  the 
Junta 139 

CHAPTER   VII. 

THE  CUBA  LIBRE  MOVEMENT. 

Justified  by  the  American  Declaration  of  Independence — Conditions  of  righteous 
insurrection  fulfilled — Suppression  of  Cuban  representation  in  the  Cortes  — 
The  captain-general  a  dictator — Petitions  presented  at  Madrid — A  plan  of 
government  and  pacification  formulated — Spain's  arrogant  answer — Cuba 
saddled  with  cost  of  suppressing  rebellions — Pensions  for  retired  Spanish 
officials — Causes  of  commercial  ruin — Present  situation  in  free  Cuba  ....  155 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

AMERICA,  CUBA'S  GOOD  SAMARITAN. 

President  McKinley's  appeal  for  Cuba's  starving  people — Restrained  from  hus- 
bandry by  Weyler's  decree — Consular  supervision  promised—  The  Christian 
Herald's  fund  opened — A  central  Cuban  relief  committee  appointed  by  the 
President — Early  shipments  of  supplies — Regular  weekly  consignments  of 
food,  quinine,  etc. — Twenty  thousand  dollars  a  day  needed  to  sustain  life — 
The  suffering  described  by  an  eye-witness — Half  a  million  slain  by  hunger — 
Admissions  of  a  Spaniard — A  living  baby  at  its  dead  mother's  breast — The 
busy  death-carts — An  appalling  statistical  table — The  Christian  Herald's  offer 
to  Clara  Barton — Red  Cross  nurses  for  the  survivors  of  the  "  Maine  " — The 
proprietor  of  the  Christian  Herald  in  relief  work  in  Cuba — A  characteristic 
incident  from  the  west 167 

CHAPTER  IX. 

AMERICA  IN  THE  ORIENT. 

Manila  a  picturesque  city — Taxed  with  no  returns — Privateering  and  neutral 
rights— Spain  defines  contraband  ot  war — President  McKinley's  Proclamation 
on  same  subject — What  a  privateer  is — The  right  of  search — America's 
marines — Admiral  Dewey  entering  the  Bay  of  Manila — Daring  attack  on 
Spanish  ships  under  the  guns  of  the  forts— Annihilation  of  Spain's  proud 
fleet — A  torrent  of  iron  hail  on  the  forts— Splendid  marksmanship  of  the  United 
States  gunners — Dewey  fighting  under  disadvantages 205 

CHAPTER   X. 

The  Geography  of  Cuba 227 

CHAPTER    XL 

HASTENING  TO  THE  END. 

Planning  to  intercept  the  Spanish  fleet— Preparations  for  a  battle  of  giants  on 
the  open  sea— Congress  providing  sinews  of  war — Spain's  policy  changed 
by  the  Manila  disaster — Hysterical  appeals  for  intervention — The  United 
States  not  seeking  territory — Causes  of  Spain's  decadence — Natural  result  of 
avarice  and  cruelty — A  specimen  proclamation — The  dynasty  menaced  with 
revolution 235 

AN    AMERICAN    WOMAN    IN    CUBA. 

Impressions  of  a  two  years'  residence  on  the  island — Havana  ajid  its  suburbs — 
The  people,  their  customs  and  amusements — Cuban  and  Spanish  cookery — 
The  concerts  at  the  Hotel  Gran  Inglaterra— The  city  walls  and  fortifications,  247 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


The  Washington  of  Cuba Frontispiece. 

Plowing  in  Cuba 12 

A  primitive  forry,  Manzanillo 13 

A  Cuban  ox-team 14 

A  fishing  boat  in  Havana  harbor 14 

An  old  well  in  Cuba  15 

Havana  harbor,  showing  Punta  and  Morro 

forts  16 

A  tramway  at  Santiago  de  Cuba  17 

Entrance  to  the  cemetery,  Havana 18 

Lee  Orphanage.  Havana 19 

Behind  window-bars  in  a  Cuban  home 21 

El  Morro,  Spain's  strongest  fortress  in  Cuba  ..  23 

Military  square  in  Havana 24 

The  Prado,  Havana  26 

Captain-General's  palace,  Havana 27 

Hon.  John  Sherman  32 

Street  in  Santiago  de  Cuba 34 

President  McKinley  37 

Hon.  William  R.  Day 38 

United  States  Capitol  at  Washington 40 

Secretary  of  Navy  Long  in  his  office 43 

J.   Addison   Porter,    secretary   to   the   Presi- 
dent   44 

Assistant-Secretary  O.  L.  Prudeu 46 

Major-General  Fitzhugh  Lee 49 

Mr.  Cortelyou 50 

Transporting  food  supplies  in  Cuba  54 

A  Spanish  doorway  in  Cuba  56 

A  Cuban  mother 60 

SenorSagasta 61 

Enlisting  recruits  for  the  war    62 

Landing-place,  Santiago  de  Cuba  68 

Late  Spanish  Premier  Canovas 69 

"  Tenting  out "  in  Cuba   69 

Sugar-cane  loaded  for  market  70 

Courtyard     of     governor-general's      palace, 

Havana 71 

In  the  courtvard  opposite  "  Los  Fossos  " 72 

A  Cuban  bedroom  73 

Marina  Street,  Santiago  de  Cuba 74 

Where  babes  were  skeletons 74 

Village  of  Seiba  del  Mocha 75 

General  Martinez  Campos 76 

Public  square  in  the  Spanish  capital 77 

United    States    Battleship    "Maine"  as   she 

appeared  on  her  Visit  to  Havana 82 

Divers  at  work  on  wreck  of  "  Maine" 83 

Mascot  of  the  "  Maine  " 83 

First  officer  Waiuwright,  of  the  "  Maine  " 84 

A  junior  officer  of  the  "  Maine  " 84 

Captain  Sigsbee,  of  the  "  Maine  " 85 

Shattered  wreck  of  the  "  Maine".... 86 

Spanish  warship  "Alfonso  XII." 86 

Don  Ramon  Blanco 87 

Don  Valeriano  Weyler 88 

The  Castle,  Cienfuegos,  Cuba 89 

View  of  the  frowning  Morro 90 

Funeral  in  Havana  of  the  "  Maine  "  victims...  91 

Boat  landing  at  Havana  harbor 92 

Cathedral  at  Havana 93 


PAGE. 

General  Stewart  L.  Woodford 94 

"  Maine  "  Court  of  Inquiry  in  session 95 

Gran  Hotel  Inglaterra % 

Street  scene  in  Old  Madrid 97 

Palace  of  the  Queen  Regent  of  Spain 99 

Path  across  the  Pacific  Ocean 106 

United  States  Cruiser  "  New  York  "  107 

Theodore  Roosevelt 108 

United  States  Torpedo  Boat  "  Gushing" 108 

Quarter  Deck  of  "  Brooklyn  " 109 

Rear-Admiral  Norton,  U.'S.  N 110 

Rear-Admiral  Sicard,  U.  S.  N 110 

United  States  Cruiser  "  Raleigh  " Ill 

United  States  Ram  "  Katahdin  " Ill 

Captain  Baker,  U.  S.  N 113 

United  States  Battleship  "  Oregon  " 113 

Philip  Hichborn 114 

Rear- Admiral  Walker,  U.  S.  N 114 

Jack  Tars'  Leisure  Hours 115 

Commodore  McCullom 115 

Commodore  McNair,  U.  S.  N 116 

United  States  cruiser  "  Brooklyn" 117 

United  States  cruiser  "Baltimore" 118 

Commander  Wilde 119 

Our  first  starry  flag 119 

Holland  submarine  boat 120 

United  States  transport  "  Fern" 121 

View  of  the  port  of  Key  West,  Fla 122 

United  States  battleship  "Indiana" 123 

United  States  battleship  "  Massachusetts" 124 

United  States  cruiser  "  Charleston  " 125 

United  States  cruiser  "Columbia" m.  126 

United  States  cruiser  "Minneapolis" 127 

United  States  battleship  "Texas" 128 

United  States  cruiser  "  Chicago" 129 

United  States  cruiser  "  Cincinnati" 130 

United  States  cruiser  "Atlanta" 132 

Spanish  battleship  "  Vizcaya" 133 

Flower  of  the  Spanish  navy 134 

Spanish  warship  "  Reina  Mercedes" 135 

General  Maximo  Gomez 139 

A  trio  of  Cuban  patriots 140 

A  visit  to  the  governor  of  Matanzas 141 

Fons  y  Sterlino. 142 

Mendez  Capole „„ 142 

Dr.  Castillo 143 

General  Roloff 144 

Ramon  Silva 145 

Moreno  la  Corre „ 146 

General  Aleman 147 

Armed  escort  on  a  relief  train  to  Matanzas 148 

Group  of  staff  officers  of  the  Cuban  army 149 

Encampment  of  a  regiment  of  Cuban  troops..  150 

Cuban  flag 156 

Harbor  of  Santiago  de  Cuba 157 

A  patriot  band  camping  in  the  woods 159 

Cuban  cavalrv .  160 

Port  of  Barcelona,  Spain 161 

King  Alfonso  XIII 162 

Queen  Regent  Maria  Christina 162 

Sufferers  at  the  Central  Relief  Station,  Havana  168 


(7) 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE. 

Central  Cuban  Relief  Commission  in  session  in 

Xe-v  York  169 

Ameiican  Congressional  visitors  at  Matanzas..  170 

Dying  on  a  palace  porch 170 

Scene  ii- the  Relief  Hospital!  Ilavau.-i 171 

Nook  in  the  Relief  Hospital,  Havana 172 

A  famine-stricken  family 172 

Reconcentrados  awaiting  the  distribution  of 

supplies 173 

Refugee  Cuban  children  now  in  United  States  174 
Relief  work  in  Cuba— distributing  supplies  ...  175 
Steamship  "State  of  Texas"  carrying  relief 

supplies 176 

Captain  F.  A.  Young 176 

A  traveling  dairy 177 

A  dead  daughter  of  famine 177 

An  interior  m  Los  Fossos 178 

Familiar  scene  in  the  poorer  section  of  Havana  179 
Workers  at  Central  Relief  Station,  Havana  ...  180 

A  Havana  famine  victim 181 

At  the  clinic  of  Lee  Orphanage 182 

A  crowded  corner  of  Los  Fossos 184 

Mrs.  Scovel  feeding  reconcentrados 185 

Reconcentrado  boys  in  a  Havana  suburb 186 

Dr.  John  Guiteras 187 

General  Nestor  A ranguren 188 

Revolutionary  Junta  of  Porto  Rico 189 

Antonio  Maceo 191 

Dr.  Henna 192 

Narciso  Lopez  193 

JoseMarte 194 

General  Calixto  Garcia 195 

General  Julio  Sanguilli 196 

Seuor  Juan  Arnao 197   ! 

I 


PAGE. 

Gonzalo  De  Quesada 198 

General  Lacret 199 

General  Pedro  E.  Betancourt  ....     200 

Francisco  Gomez  Toro 201 

Carlos  Garcia 202 

Justo  Garcia 202 

Admiral  George  Dewey 206 

United  States  cruiser  "'Olympia  " 207 

United  States  "Baltimore" 209 

A  street  in  Manila 211 

United  States  cruiser  "  Ralei.uh  " 212 

United  States  cruiser  "  Boston  "    214 

Drving  vards  of  a  sugar  refinery  in  Manila 217 

Port  of  "Manila 218 

A  street  market  in  Manila 219 

A  half-caste  woman  ot  Manila 221 

A  lady  of  Manila 222 

Matanzas 228 

A  troop  of  Cuban  cavalry  in  the  Held 229 

Portal  of  cave  of  Caignanabo 230 

View  of  Matanzas 2^0 

Bayamo 230 

Cienfuegos 230 

A  sugar  plantation 230 

Porto  Rico,  general  view 231 

Governor's  palace 231 

United  States  Marine  Hospital  at  Kev  West, 

Fla 236 

Commodore  Schley,  U.  S.  N 237 

Commodore  Howell,  U.  S.  N 238 

Cabinet  room  in  the  White  House        239 

General  N.  A.  Miles,  U.  S.  A   240 

Familiar  scene  at  Chickamauga  Park 241 

Major-General  Brooke 242 


CHAPTER  I. 


The  Pearl  of  the  Antilles, 


(9) 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


CHAPTER  I. 

CUBA,  THE  PEARL  OF  THE  ANTILLES. 

First  glimpse  of  Cuba— Mistakes  of  Columbus— Its  early  names— Its  strange  shape 
— Undeveloped  mineral  treasures — A  rainy  record — The  one  day  of  snow — A 
land  of  trees  and  fruits — Birds — How  the  island  is  peopled — Peninsulars, 
Riollos  and  Asiatics — Characteristics  of  the  provinces — Nominal  representa- 
tion— An  expensive  religion — An  island  in  pawn — Love,  courtship  and  matri- 
mony in  Cuba. 

JFTER  centuries  of  oppression,  and  many  long  and  cruel 
wars,  in  which  innumerable  lives  have  been  sacrificed,  the 
beautiful  island  of  Cuba  at  last  emerges  into  the  sweet 
light  of  freedom.  Our  own  day  and  generation  have 
witnessed  the  culmination  of  the  noble  struggle  conducted  by  her 
people,  under  patriotic  leaders,  against  the  brutal  and  inhuman 
tyranny  of  Spain — a  struggle  in  which  every  resource  suggested  by 
barbarism  seemed  to  have  been  exhausted  by  the  oppressor. 

Although  civilization  stood  aghast  at  the  atrocities  perpetrated 
in  Cuba,  under  Spanish  misrule,  and  at  the  ruin  of  the  most 
valuable  possession  of  the  Spanish  Crown,  yet  no  hand  or  voice  was 
raised  in  protest.  Europe's  attitude  was  that  which  it  had  assumed 
in  the  case  of  Armenia — a  passive  spectator  of  the  application  of  the 
policy  of  extermination  by  famine  and  the  sword,  through  which  Spain 
hoped  forever  to  settle  the  long-vexed  "  Cuban  question."  Then 
there  came  a  time  when  our  own  free  and  favored  nation,  horrified  at 
the  great  crime  being  enacted  at  its  very  doors,  espoused  Cuba's 
cause  in  the  interest  of  humanity,  and  commanded  Spain  to  put  an 
«nd  to  the  pitiless  warfare  which  had  made  of  the  once  beautiful  and 


12  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

fertile  island  a  wilderness  of  graves.  But  Spain  only  mocked  at  the 
mandate,  and  hardened  her  heart,  like  Pharaoh  of  old,  who  "  would 
not  let  the  people  go."  The  inevitable  climax  was  reached  when  the 
great  Republic  of  the  West  arose  in  its  might,  smote  the  oppressor 
and,  breaking  Cuba's  fetters,  declared  her  freed  forever  from  the 
slavery  of  Spain.  Henceforward,  the  "  Pearl  of  the  Antilles"  has 
two  days  that  will  be  perpetually  memorable — the  day  of  her  dis- 


PLOWING   IN   CUBA. 


covery  and  that  of  her  liberation.     Her  sons  and  daughters  will  cele- 
brate both  with  equal  enthusiasm  in  the  years  to  come. 

Cuba's  history  is  a  long  record  of  romantic  conquest  and  adven- 
ture. On  a  beautiful  autumn  morning,  October  28,  1492,  the  simple 
people  who  were  then  her  inhabitants  might  have  seen  three  queer 
looking  vessels  approaching  her  shores.  They  were  the  exploring 
ships  of  Christopher  Columbus. 


CUBA,  THE  PEARL  OF  THE  ANTILLES.  13 

The  "  Santa  Maria,"  a  ship  of  ninety  feet  keel,  with  four  masts, 
of  which  two  were  square-rigged  and  two  fitted  with  lateen  sails,  and 
carrying  an  armament  of  heavy  guns,  was  manned  by  sixty-six  sea- 
men with  Columbus  at  their  head.  The  other  two  vessels,  which 
were  intended  for  the  exploration  of  rivers  and  coasts,  were  under  the 
charge  of  two  brothers,  Martin  and  Vincente  Pinzon. 

As  the  great  discoverer  sailed  along  the  shores  of  this  "  enchanted 
land"  he  imagined  that  he  was  13,000  miles  from  where  he  really 


A   PRIMITIVE   FERRY,    MANZANILLO,    CUBA. 

was ;  and  the  island  that  is  known  to  us  as  less  than  half  the  size  of 
Italy  and  smaller  than  the  State  of  New  York,  his  excited  imagina- 
tion pictured  as  a  vast  continent  and  kingdom  of  the  East.  A  small 
island  near  at  hand,  he  named  Isabella,  for  the  loved  queen  of  Castile, 
who  was  his  royal  patroness,  and  of  it  he  wrote:  ''Everything  is 
green  as  April  in  Andalusia.  The  singing  of  the  birds  is  such  that  it 
seems  as  if  one  would  never  desire  to  depart.  There  are  trees  of  a 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


thousand  species,  each  having  its  particular  fruit,  and  all  of  marvel- 
ous flavor."  But  of  Cuba  he  was  more  enthusiastic  in  his  expressions 
of  admiration.  This  land  which  he  described  as  the  most  beautiful 
that  man  had  ever  laid  eyes  on,  he  called  Juana,  for  Prince  Juan,  only 
son  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  and  at  the  death  of  Ferdinand  it  was 

changed    to    Fernan- 
dina,  and  afterward  to 
*        Santiago,  in  honor  of 


A  CUBAN    OX-TEAM. 

St.  James,  and  then 
it  was  named  for 
the  Holy  Virgin  ; 
but  for  400  years  it 
has  been  known  by 
the  Indian  name, 
Cubanacan,  which 
means  the  place 
where  gold  is  found. 
It  is  the  most 

westerly  of  the  West  India  group,  lying  between  the  Caribbean  Sea 
and  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  The  greatest  length  from  east  to  west 
is  760  miles;  the  width  varies  from  20  to  135  miles,  and  the  area, 
including  dependencies,  covers  47,278  square  miles.  As  will  be  seen 
by  the  map,  in  shape  it  is  long,  narrow  and  slightly  curved,  the  con- 
vex side  being  on  the  north.  The  entire  coast  line  is  about  twenty- 


CUBA,  THE  PEARL  OF  THE  ANTILLES. 


two  hundred  English  miles,  and  the  approach  to  the  shores  is  made 
difficult  and  dangerous,  because  they  are  lined  with  reefs  and  shallows, 
extending  often  from  two  to  three  miles  into  the  sea. 

The  peculiarities  of  the  coast  are  very  marked,  and  on  the  north 
coast-line,  which  is  about  one  thousand  miles  long,  and  on  the  south 
side,  which  is  some- 
what longer,  nu- 
merous islets  and 
reefs,  mostly  of  coral 
or  limestone  forma- 
tion, give  great  ir- 
regularity to  the 
shore-line.  Notwith- 
standing this  fact, 
the  island  has  more 
than  two  hundred 
ports  and  sheltered 
landings.  From 
east  to  west  Cuba 
is  intersected  by  a 
range  of  mountains, 
some  of  which  reach 
the  height  of  8000 
feet ;  and  from  each 
side  of  the  range  riv- 
ers flow  to  the  sea. 
According  to  Hum- 
boldt,  four-fifths  of 
Cuba  consists  of 
lowlands,  and  the 
ground  is  covered 
with  secondary  and 
tertiary  formations, 
and  is  traversed  by  rocks  of  granite,  syenite,  gneiss  and  euphotide. 
There  is  scarcely  a  metal  applicable  to  industry  that  is  not  found  in 
the  island,  and  the  immense  deposits  of  pure,  white  sand,  from  which 
the  best  earthenware  is  made,  form  a  feature  of  the  Isle  of  Pines, 


AN   OLD  WELL   IN  CUBA. 


CUBA,  THE  PEARL  OF  THE  ANTILLES. 


near  at  hand.     These  natural  treasures  lie  largely  untouched  by  the 

energy  of  man,  and  at  the  call  of  labor,  enterprise  and  capital,  this 

Paradise  of  the  Atlantic  will  give  forth  her  hidden  riches.     While 

the  climate  is  warm  during  most  of  the  year,  it  is  more  temperate 

than  in  other  lands  of  the  same  latitude,  and  during  the  hot  season, 

from  April  to  October,  the  heat  seldom  reaches  100°  F.  in  any  part 

of  the  island,  while  the  dry  season  corresponds  very  nearly  to  our 

late  autumn,  winter  and  early  spring.     The  average  temperature  of 

Havana  is  77°  ;  maximum,  89°  ;  minimum,  50°.     The  rainy  season 

extends  from  the  middle  of 

May  until  about  the  first  of 

November,  and  the  rainfall 

in    the    island  in  one    year 

has     reached     133     inches. 

Only  once  in  the  history  of 

Cuba  has  snow  been  known 

to  fall  upon  the  island,  and 

that  was  on  December  24-25, 

1856. 

When  Columbus  dis- 
covered the  island  he  found 
the  natives  cultivating  six 
varieties  of  sweet  potato,  as 
well  as  the  yuca  and  the 
Indian  corn.  The  luxuri- 
ance of  the  vegetation  of 
Cuba  is  a  necessary  conse- 
quence from  the  richness  of 
its  soil,  the  refreshing  influ- 
ence of  its  260  rivers  and  the  salubrity  of  its  climate.  The  forests 
abound  in  the  finest  furniture  wood,  such  as  ebony,  rosewood; 
mahogany,  cedar  and  lancewood ;  building  wood,  such  as  ecana, 
jocuma,  etc.  ;  while  forty-one  varieties  of  the  palm  grow  wild.  All 
the  fruit  common  to  the  tropics  are  here  in  abundance,  and  Hum- 
bold  t  is  of  the  opinion  that  the  entire  island  was  originally  a  forest 
of  palms,  wild  lime  and  orange  trees.  The  sugar  plantations  of 
Cuba  are  world  renowned.  Year  after  year  the  cane  grows  on 


A   TRAMWAY   AT   SANTIAGO   DE   CUBA. 


18 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


yielding  its  sweets  in  the  greatest  luxuriance,  and  the  many  towering 
chimneys  of  sugar  factories,  testify  to  the  enormous  wealth  that 
accrues  from  Cuban  cane.  It  is  estimated  that  the  sugar  produc- 
tion of  Cuba,  under  conditions  of  peace,  is  more  than  one  million 
tons  a  year.  It  cannot  be  denied  that  the  best  tobacco  plantations 
in  the  world  are  those  in  Pinar  del  Rio,  the  western  province  of 


ENTRANCE  TO  THE  CEMETERY,  HAVANA. 

In  this  Cemetery  lie  the  Victims  of  the  "Maine.''1 

the  island  ;    but  in  times  of  war  this  industry,  like  others,  has  been 
practically  suspended. 

Not  only  for  richness  of  soil,  but  for  beauty  of  scenery  the  Pearl 
of  the  Antilles  is  renowned.  With  its  fertile  plains,  its  lofty 
mountains,  its  sparkling  inlets  and  rivers  where  in  all  the  world  can 
the  Valley  of  the  Yumuri  be  surpassed  ?  It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that, 
although  the  forests  are  extensive  and  almost  impenetrable,  no 
ferocious  wild  animals  inhabit  them  ;  and  the  wild  dog,  which  is  the 
most  dangerous  animal  in  Cuba  except  the  Spaniard  (and  soon  we 
shall  not  have  to  make  this  exception),  is  descended  from  the 


CUBA,  THE  PEARL  OF  THE  ANTILLES.  19 

domestic  European  dog,  changed  in  habits  and  appearance  by  his 
independent  life  in  the  woods.  The  best  authorities  inform  us  that 
there  are  more  than  two  hundred  species  of  birds,  many  of  them  of 
brilliant  plumage,  that  fly  through  these  flower  and  fruit  forests  and 
641  kinds  of  fish  swim  in  the  rivers  of  the  island.  Although  one  may 
be  annoyed  by  the  numerous  insects  that  are  painfully  in  evidence 
during  certain  months  of  the  year,  none  are  venomous,  with  the 


THE  LEE  ORPHANAGE,  HAVANA. 

Now  Containing  over  150  Helpless  Orphans. 

exception  of  the  tarantula  and  scorpion,  which  are  not  as  poisonous 
as  elsewhere ;  and  snakes  are  seldom  seen. 

Cuba  has  a  mongrel  population.  For  some  time  after  the  con- 
quest in  1511,  none  but  Castilians  were  permitted  to  settle  here;  but 
for  three  hundred  years  colonists  from  every  Spanish  province  have 
come  hither,  and  consequently  Spaniards  of  all  classes  are  represented 
on  the  island.  The  word  Creole  is  applied  to  the  offspring  of  for- 
eigners, whether  black  or  white,  and  the  children  of  Creoles  are 
known  as  riollos.  Although  the  size  of  Cuba  is  nearly  equal  to  that 


20  COLUMBIA'S   WAR  FOR  CUBA. 

of  Pennsylvania,  on  account  of  the  sand  keys,  the  swamps  and  the 
unknown  mountainous  lands,  all  of  which  embrace  at  least  one-fifth 
of  the  island,  its  population  is  hardly  equal  to  one-third  of  the  Key- 
stone State.  It  is  thought  that  one-fifth  of  the  inhabitants  of  Cuba 
are  "  Peninsulars,"  or  natives  of  Spain,  who  control  all  remunerative 
offices.  The  number  of  white  persons  who  are  not  of  Spanish  blood 
is  estimated  to  be  not  more  than  ten  or  twelve  thousand  ;  and  the 
negro  population,  which  ten  years  ago  was  nearly  five  hundred  thou- 
sand, has  been  on  a  gradual  decrease,  which  the  mongrel  element  has 
greatly  increased.  In  1502,  when  Ovando  was  sent  by  the  Spanish 
government  'to  Cuba,  he  brought  with  him  African  slaves,  and 
although  the  gradual  emancipation  act  was  pass»  by  the  Cortes  in 
1870,  slavery  was  not  absolutely  abolished  until  ^86. 

In  1847  two  ships  from  the  Philippines  readUd  Havana  with  679 
Asiatic  coolies ;  others  soon  followed,  and  at  present  it  is  supposed  that 
there  are  forty  thousand  of  these  Oriental  laborers  on  the  island. ' 

The  following  table  gives  the  most  recent  census  of  the  popula- 
tion by  provinces : 

Provinces.  Inhabitants. 

Pinar  del  Rio 225,891 

Havana 451,928 

Matanzas 259>5?8 

Santa  Clara 354,122 

Puerto  Principe       ....  67,789 

Santiago  de  Cuba    ....  272,379 

Total      : 1,631,687 

These  six  provinces  form  the  political  division  of  Cuba  ;  the 
name  of  the  province  and  that  of  its  most  important  city  are  invari- 
ably the  same ;  several  judicial  districts  are  established  in  each 
province,  and  attached  to  each  town  is  a  tract  of  country  which  is 
known  as  a  township. 

Pinar  del  Rio  is  world-renowned  for  its  fine  tobacco ;  Havana, 
besides  its  fertility,  is  the  chief  manufacturing  centre  of  the  island  ; 
Matanzas,  perhaps  the  richest  province  of  all,  produces  the  cereals  in 
abundance,  but  is  especially  noted  for  its  great  sugar  plantations ;  Santa 
Clara,  one  of  the  first  parts  of  the  land  to  be  settled,  is  a  famous 


CUBA,  THE  PEART,  OF  THE  ANTILLES. 


sugar  region,  and  its  mountains  are  said  to  be  rich  in  gold,  silver, 
copper  and  asphalt ;  Puerto  Principe  is  a  mountainous  region  and  its 
vast  forests  contain  celebrated  building  and  cabinet  woods ;  and 
Santiago  de  Cuba  owes  its  wealth  to  a  combination  of  characteristics. 
Its  fields  are  fertile  ;  its  woods  are  full  of  valuable  trees  ;  its  mountains 
are  rich  in  minerals  and  its  commerce,  when  not  blighted  by  war, 
enliven  distant  ports. 

On  January  9,  1879,  the  Spanish  Cortes  passed  an  act  giving 
Cuba  a  representation  in 
that  body,  and  allowing 
Havana  to  send  three 
senators  to  Madrid,  each 
of  the  other  provinces 
two,  the  archbishopric 
of  Santiago  one,  the  Uni- 
versity of  Havana  one 
and  the  Society  of  the 
Friends  of  the  Country 
one. 

The  thirty  deputies 
sent  to  the  House  of 
Deputies  are  elected  by 
popular  ballot  in  the 
ratio  of  one  representa- 
tive to  every  50,000  of 
the  population.  From 
the  fact  that,  in  a  recent 
election,  twenty-six  out 
of  thirty  deputies  were 
natives  of  Spain,  it  is  not  hard  to  imagine  what  influences  are  at  work 
The  captain-general,  appointed  by  the  Spanish  Crown  usually  for  a 
term  of  three  to  five  years,  is  at  the  head  of  the  military  government; 
and,  indeed,  is  the  supreme  power  in  civil,  ecclesiastical,  military  and 
naval  affairs  in  the  island,  his  administration  council  composed  of 
thirty  members,  being  completely  under  his  authority.  While  the 
Crown  appoints  fifteen  of  the  members  of  this  council  of  adminis- 
tration, and  the  other  fifteen  are  supposed  to  be  elected  by  the 


BEHIND   THE   WINDOW   BARS   IN    A    CUBAN   TfOMfl. 


22 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


provinces,  according  to  population,  the  government  always  manages  to 
have  a  majority  of  twenty-five  to  five.  What  is  known  as  the  coun- 
cil of  authorities  is  composed  of  the  archbishop  of  Santiago ;  the 
bishop  of  Havana ;  the  commanding  officers  of  the  army  and  navy  ; 
the  chief  justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Havana  ;  the  attorney- 
general  ;  the  chief  of  the  department  of  finances  ;  and  the  director 
of  the  local  administration. 

Besides  this  general  government,  each  province  has  a  governor, 
appointed  from  Madrid,  who  has  the  rank  of  major-general  or  briga- 
dier-general in  the  army, 
and  in  each  province 
there  is  also  an  elective 
assembly  of  not  less  than 
twelve,  nor  more  than 
twenty  members,  accord- 
ing to  population.  Nom- 
inally there  is  a  judicial 
system  in  Cuba  embrac- 
ing two  superior  courts, 
one  sitting  at  Puerto 
Principe,  for  the  Eastern 
provinces  and  the  other  at  Havana,  for  the  four  Western  provinces; 
but  as  under  a  decree  of  June  9,  1878,  the  governor-general  has 
authority  to  overrule  any  decision  of  this  or  any  other  court,  the 
deliverances  of  the  judiciary  may  mean  very  little. 

Catholicism,  the  religion  of  the  island,  being  an  affair  of  the 
State,  is  maintained  from  the  general  revenues ;  and  according  to  the 
budget  of  1893-94,  $385,588  were  spent  for  this  purpose. 

The  governor-general  and  the  rector  of  the  University  of  Havana 
have  direction  of  the  educational  system  of  Cuba.  It  is  worthy  of 
note  that  as  early  as  1721  a  university  was  established  at  Havana; 
but  the  corner-stone  of  the  new  university  building  was  not  laid  until 
January  4,  1884.  Each  of  the  six  provinces  has  a  collegiate  institute  ; 
and  according  to  the  budget  of  1893-94,  $137,760  were  expended  for 
educational  purposes,  no  part  of  which  went  to  the  aid  of  the  com- 
mon schools.  By  a  law  of  1880,  education  was  made  compulsory  ; 
but  we  learn  from  the  best  authority  that  the  children  attend  the 
common  schools  at  the  rate  of  one  to  forty. 


(23) 


-4 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


The  Pearl  of  the  Antilles  in  its  comparatively  undeveloped  con- 
dition, has  proven  to  be  a  rich  mine  for  Spain.  Her  revenues  have 
been  pledged  over  and  over  again  to  pay  for  the  debts  incurred  by  the 
mother  land  ;  and  this  is  the  reason  why,  during  all  these  years, 
such  a  system  of  heavy  taxation  has  been  placed  upon  her.  For  the 
fiscal  year  1895-6,  the  immense  income  of  $24,755,760  was  realized 
by  the  government  from  this  little  strip  of  land  ;  and  during  this 
period  the  exports  from  the  island  amounted  to  over  $70,000,000. 


A   MILITARY   SQUARE  IN    HAVANA. 

With  all  the  attraction  that  Cuba  presents  to  the  intending 
settler,  it  is  doubtful  if  it  will  ever  be  popular  with  American  young- 
people,  unless  and  until  it  changes  some  of  its  social  customs.  Old 
world  ideas  of  the  conventionalities  to  be  observed  in  the  relations  of 
the  sexes  are  in  full  force  in  the  island.  The  American  young 
gentleman  discovers  to  his  dismay,  that  it  is  more  difficult  to  make 
the  acquaintance  of  a  charming  girl  in  Cuba  than  it  is  at  home. 
There  is  no  lack  of  beautiful  young  ladies  there  ;  he  sees  their  faces 
at  the  windows  and  notices  their  graceful  forms  and  bright,  laughing 
eyes  in  the  parks  and  public  places,  but  he  cannot  easily  get  on 
speaking  terms  with  them.  This  is  very  tantalizing,  but  there  is 


CUBA,  THE  PEARL  OF  THE  ANTILLES.  25 

nothing  to  be  gained  by  complaining.  If,  according  to  the  old  adage, 
"  faint  heart  never  won  fair  lady  "  in  other  places,  the  bold  wooer 
finds  himself  at  a  disadvantage  in  Cuba.  The  citadel  must  be  cap- 
tured, if  captured  at  all,  by  a  siege  proceeding  on  clearly  marked 
lines  and  by  the  regular  approaches  defined  by  public  opinion. 

The  young  man  who  discovers  that  his  heart  has  been  pierced 
by  one  of  cupid's  arrows,  must  in  some  way  make  the  acquaintance 
of  the  father  of  the  young  lady  whose  charms  have  impressed  him. 
There  is  no  hope  of  getting  acquainted  with  her  in  her  walks,  or  at 
a  sociable,  because  she  never  stirs  out  of  doors  unaccompanied  by 
her  mother,  or  elderly  aunt  or  some  inconvenient  person  who  can  be 
trusted  to  keep  designing  young  men  at  a  safe  distance.  It  is  to  the 
father  that  the  young  aspirant  must  go.  He  must  ingratiate  himself 
with  this  personage,  whom  at  home  he  would  doubtless  speak  of 
irreverently  as  "  the  old  man  "  and  regard  as  by  no  means  an  essen- 
tial factor  in  the  matter.  He  is  the  way  and  the  only  way  in  this 
case.  The  young  man  must  convince  him  that  he  is  of  good 
character  and  in  all  ways  a  desirable  kind  of  person  to  have  as  a 
friend  of  the  family.  This  done  he  has  to  be  somewhat  explicit,  in 
the  event  of  there  being  more  than  one  marriageable  daughter,  as  to 
which  of  the  young  ladies  he  desires  to  visit.  If  all  goes  well  so 
far,  the  young  man  is  "  at  liberty  to  call."  He  may  call  often,  but 
he  never  has  the  happiness  of  finding  the  young  lady  alone.  The 
mother  or  some  one  to  play  the  part  of  "  duenna  "  is  always  with  her 
when  he  calls,  and  she  is  never  caught  napping.  She  allows  no 
whispering,  nor  any  confidential  talk.  It  is  all  very  proper  and 
formal,  but  a  little  dull.  Sometimes,  passing  the  house,  he  may  get 
an  opportunity  for  a  less  formal  talk,  if,  as  may  happen,  the  young 
lady  should  chance  to  be  at  the  casement  of  the  house  when  he  goes 
by.  But  such  interviews  are  very  short,  for  the  young  lady  is  as 
much  in  dread  of  public  opinion  as  of  her  duenna.  It  would  be  a 
terrible  disgrace  to  have  her  neighbors  think  there  was  any  "  forth- 
putting  "  on  her  part.  If  this  closer  acquaintance  has  increased  the 
young  man's  admiration  and  if  he  has  seen  any  signs  on  the  girl's 
part,  that  encourage  him  to  hope  that  she  reciprocates  his  regard,  he 
prepares  to  enter  the  second  stage  of  his  courtship.  At  home  that 
would  be  "  to  propose  to  the  girl  "  and  learn  his  fate  from  her  lips 


26 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


Not  so  in  Cuba.  The  proper  course  there  is  to  call  in  the  assistance 
of  his  father.  This  is  indispensable  and  has  sometimes  proved  an 
insurmountable  obstacle.  The  young  man  has  to  convince  his  father 
of  the  desirability  of  the  connection  and  to  inspire  him  with  some  of 
his  own  enthusiasm.  He  does  not  always  succeed  and  then  the 


THE  PRADO,    HAVANA. 

Looking  toward  the  Castillo  de  Morra. 

preliminary  work,  already  done,  is  wasted.  But  if  he  wins  his  father 
as  an  ally,  that  personage  waits  on  the  father  of  the  girl  and  formally 
proposes  the  marriage.  The  two  discuss  the  business  side  of  the 
proposition  and  if  that  ends  satisfactorily,  the  second  stage  is  safely 


CUBA,  THE  PEARL  OF  THE  ANTILLES. 


27 


passed.  The  point  at  which  the  prospective  bride's  consent  is  gained 
is  not  clear,  but  it  is  assumed  that  her  father  has  been  in  some  way 
informed,  either  by  his  wife,  or  by  some  one  else  in  his  family, 
whether  the  suit  is  agreeable,  or  not,  to  the  one  most  concerned. 
The  young  man  may  then  call  in  his  new  character  as  an  accepted 
lover,  but  he  does  not  get  rid  of  the  duenna.  Her  duties  continue. 
He  gets  no  kiss,  no  endearment,  no  exchange  of  tokens  of  affection, 
so  precious  to  American  lovers.  Not  until  the  marriage  has  actually 
taken  place  are  the  duenna's  functions  at  an  end. 

The  ceremony  of  marriage  is  twofold.  The  parties  repair  first 
of  all  to  the 
church,  the  bride 
attired  in  a  dress 
chosen  and  pro- 
vided by  the  bride- 
groom. The  priest 
performs  the  mar- 
riage ceremony 


THE  CAPTAIN-GENERAL'S   PALACE,  HAVANA. 


and  is  duly  recom- 
p  e  n  s  e  d  by  the 
bridegroom  or  his 
father.  Then  the 
party  proceeds  to 
the  town  hall  or 
a  court  of  justice, 
where  the  two 
principals  must 
answer  certain  questions  and  sign  the  record.  This  business  com- 
pleted, the  party  goes  to  the  home  of  the  bride,  where  her  father 
has  provided  a  feast  graded  in  splendor  according  to  his  position 
in  society.  Among  the  poorer  classes  it  is  simply. what  they  call 
a  "  pig-roast,"  in  which  a  roast  sucking-pig  is  the  principal  dish. 
Presents  to  the  bride  from  her  family  and  friends  are  then  in  order. 
The  festivities  are  continued  for  some  hours,  and  when  the  last  of  the 
guests  has  danced  himself  tired  and  has  gone  home,  the  bride  and 
her  husband  are  at  liberty  to  depart  to  their  new  home.  This  has 
been  furnished  throughout  by  the  bridegroom  and  his  family,  and, 


28  COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 

entering  it,  the  young  couple,  safely  through  their  many  ordeals, 
commence  their  new  life.  In  normal  times  there  is  not  much  diffi- 
culty, when  there  is  health  and  strength,  in  the  husband  maintaining 
his  wife  in  the  position  to  which  she  has  been  accustomed.  The 
unskilled  laborer  can,  with  very  moderate  industry,  earn  a  dollar  a 
day,  and  if  he  has  skill,  he  can  become  a  clerk  with  a  salary  of  $100 
a  month,  or  a  railroad  conductor  at  $125,  or  an  engineer  at  $145. 
If  he  has  been  well  educated,  he  may  become  a  private  secretary  to 
some  Spanish  official,  at  a  still  better  salary.  If  the  official  is  igno- 
rant and  if,  as  occasionally  happens,  he  is  so  illiterate  that  he  cannot 
keep  the  records  of  his  office,  or  write  an  ordinary  letter,  his  private 
secretary  can  get  a  salary  of  three  or  four  thousand  dollars  a  year  for 
performing  his  employer's  duties. 


CHAPTER 


America  Cuba's  Champion 


(29) 


CHAPTER   II. 

AMERICA,  CUBA'S  CHAMPION. 

Abortive  insurrection  of  the  past — American  sympathizers  on  the  roll  of  martyr- 
dom— President  Grant's  indignation — National  convention  of  both  parties 
sympathetic— Woodford's  effective  protest  against  Weyler— General  Fitzhugh 
Lee's  vigorous  Americanism— Personal  observations  of  United  States  Senators 
— Humane  shrinking  from  the  inevitable  conflict — President  McKinley's 
historical  message — The  Congressional  resolutions — The  ultimatum  sent  to 
Woodford — Woodford's  summary  dismissal — President  McKinley's  call  for 
volunteers — Another  message — War  declared. 

JT  would  be  strange,  indeed,  did  not  America's  sympathy  go 
out  toward  the  people  near  our  shores  who  are  struggling 
for  independence  and  nationality,  for  in  1776  she  was 
passing  through  the  same  ordeal.  During  the  insurrec- 
tions in  1823,  1829,  J^35  an(^  *844  in  Cuba,  the  American  people 
watched  with  increasing  interest  the  efforts  of  the  Cubans  to 
shake  off  the  burdens  that  Spanish  tyranny  imposed  ;  and  in  1850 
occurred  the  noted  Lopez  and  Crittenden  expedition,  in  which 
the  latter,  who  was  a  graduate  of  West  Point  and  a  Mexican  war 
hero,  was  shot  by  the  Spaniards,  and  the  former  was  executed 
with  the  garrote  at  Havana.  The  case  of  Captain  Joseph  Fry, 
the  "  Cuban  Martyr,"  caused  intense  feeling  throughout  the  United 
States  twenty-five  years  ago.  At  Port  an  Prince,  October  7, 
1873,  he  took  on  board  the  "Virginius"  a  large  amount  of  war 
material,  and  while  the  vessel  was  bound  for  Cuba  she  was  run  down 
by  the  Spanish  gunboat  "  Tornado,"  and  although  Captain  Fry  pro- 
tested that  his  papers  were  regular  and  that  the  "  Virginius "  was 
"  an  American  ship,  carrying  American  colors  and  papers,  with  an 
American  captain  and  an  American  crew,"  she  was  taken  as  a  prize 
to  Santiago  de  Cuba,  and  the  prisoners  were  condemned  to  be  shot 
to  death,  Fry  declaring :  "  If  I  die,  it  will  be  for  the  Cuban  cause." 
On  the  afternoon  of  November  7,  1873,  Captain  Fry  and  fifty-two  of 
his  men  were  shot ;  and  it  was  only  through  the  heroic  intervention 
of  Captain  Sir  Lampton  Lorraine,  of  the  British  steamer  "  Niobe," 

(31) 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR   CUBA. 


that  the  massacre  of  the  other  ninety-three  prisoners  was  prevented. 
The  Spaniards,  by  means  of  certain  technical  rights,  escaped  the 
severe  punishment  that  should  have  been  visited  upon  them  for  this 
shocking  wholesale  murder  ;  but  the  dreadful  affair  produced  a  pro- 
found impression  upon  this  country,  increasing  the  antipathy  for 
Spain  and  sympathy  for  the  Cubans.  In  his  Annual  Message  to 
Congress,  December,  1875,  President  Grant  wrote  these  strong  words  : 
"  The  past  year  has  furnished  no  evidence  of  an  approaching  ter- 
mination of  the  ruinous  conflict  which  has  been  waging  for  seven 

years  in  the  neighboring  island  of 
Cuba.  The  same  disregard  of  the 
laws  of  civilized  warfare  and  of  the 
just  demands  of  humanity,  which 
has  heretofore  called  forth  expres- 
sions of  condemnation  from  the 
nations  of  Christendom,  has  con- 
tinued to  blacken  the  sad  scene. 
Desolation,  ruin  and  pillage  are 
pervading  the  rich  fields  of  one  of 
the  most  fertile  and  productive 
regions  of  earth,  and  the  incen- 
diary's torch,  firing  plantations 
and  valuable  factories  and  build- 
ings, is  the  agent  marking  the 
alternate  advance  or  retreat  of  con- 
tending parties.  ...  I  have 
hoped  that  Spain  would  be  able 
to  establish  peace  in  her  colony,  to 
afford  security  to  the  property  and 
the  interests  of  our  citizens,  and  allow  legitimate  scope  to  trade  and 
commerce  and  the  natural  productions  of  the  island.  .  .  .  Thus  far 
all  the  efforts  of  Spain  have  proved  abortive,  and  time  has  marked  no 
improvement  in  the  situation."  By  diplomatic  tricks,  at  which  the 
government  at  Madrid  has  always  been  an  adept  expert,  the  Cuban 
question  was  side-tracked  ;  promises  of  reforms  were  made  ;  and  as 
so  often  it  has  happened  in  her  dealings  with  the  United  States,  she 
gained  her  point,  while  at  the  same  time  seemingly  yielding  to  our 


HON.    JOHN   SHERMAN, 

Secretary  of  State. 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION.  33 

requests.  In  tricks  that  are  vain  the  Chinee  does  not  hold  a  monopoly 
of  power.  The  Spaniard  can  give  him  several  points  in  the  art  of 
not  doing  what  the  uninitiated  thinks  he  is  doing !  But  the  interest 
of  the  United  States  in  the  struggling  Cubans  grew  apace. 

The  last  conventions  of  the  two  great  political  parties  of 
America  met  while  the  present  insurrection  was  eliciting  the  sympa- 
thetic interest  of  our  people,  and  in  both  gatherings  there  were  dec- 
larations of  no  uncertain  sound.  President  McKinley  was  elected  on 
a  platform  one  of  the  planks  in  which  was  dedicated  to  the  freedom 
of  Cuba.  The  appointment  of  the  late  Minister  to  Madrid  looked 
to  this,  and  Mr.  Woodford  left  this  country  with  the  distinct  under- 
standing that  he  was  to  introduce  the  subject  of  a  change  of  affairs 
in  Cuba  to  the  government  of  the  Queen  Regent.  The  agitation  of 
this  matter  resulted  in  the  recall  of  the  murderous  Weyler,  the  depo- 
sition of  the  Spanish  Minister  at  Washington,  and  the  promise  of ! 
autonomy  under  the  direction  of  General  Blanco.  It  is  interesting 
to  note  how  the  inevitable  approached.  Events  of  importance  fol- 
lowed quick  upon  each  others'  heels,  and  it  soon  became  apparent 
that  Congress  would  not  adjourn  until  the  crisis  was  reached  and  per- 
haps passed.  President  McKinley  readily  recognized  that  the  sending 
of  General  Fitzhugh  Lee  to  Havana  by  his  predecessor,  Mr.  Cleve- 
land, was  an  eminently  wise  act,  and  after  his  recall  to  Washington 
for  a  conference  with  the  President  he  was  returned  to  Cuba,  doubt- 
less with  specific  directions.  With  a  thorough  knowledge  of  military 
matters,  knowing  no  such  thing  as  fear,  possessing  the  elements  of  a 
typical  Southern  gentleman,  and  being  a  loyal,  loving  American, 
General  Lee  was  the  right  man  in  the  right  place.  During  the  open- 
ing days  of  this  year  it  was  clearly  apparent  that  the  new  move  by 
Spain  to  establish  what  she  was  pleased  to  call  an  autonomy,  or 
condition  of  self-government  in  Cuba,  was  destined  to  fail  ;  that  the 
milder  methods  of  the  new  Captain-General,  General  Blanco,  were 
received  with  no  more  respect  by  the  determined  insurgents  than  the 
iron  and  bloody  rule  of  Weyler  ;  that  the  devastation  on  the  island 
was  on  the  increase  ;  that  the  miserable  reconcentrados,  although 
aided  by  American  charity,  were  dying  by  the  thousands  from  disease 
and  starvation  ;  and  that  the  insurgents,  instead  of  being  conquered 
or  brought  to  terms,  were  fighting  more  heroically  than  ever,  and 

3 


34  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

were  making  startling  advancements  in  directions  that  surprised  and 
alarmed  the  Spanish  forces.  Reliable  reports  from  American  citizens 
who  visited  the  island,  trustworthy  dispatches  through  the  Associated 
Press,  information  given  by  Cuban  refugees,  and  the  thrilling 
speeches  made  in  the  United  States  Senate  by  several  senators  who 
made  personal  investigations,  on  the  ground  of  the  condition  that 


A  STREET   IN   SANTIAGO   DE   CUBA. 


existed  in  Cuba,  all  united  to  add  fuel  to  the  flame  of  American  sym- 
pathy for  the  suffering  and  indignation  against  Spanish  ferocity. 
These  stirring  days  witnessed  a  picture  of  princely  patience  in  the 
White  House  that  must  ever  call  forth  the  admiration  of  all  right- 
thinking  men.  Having  to  contend  against  an  excited  constituency 
at  home  and  a  cold,  tricky  diplomacy  abroad,  President  McKinley 
wrote  his  name  in  history  as  a  sage  statesman,  a  prudent  patriot,  a 
strong,  sweet-spirited  Christian  man,  self-mastered  and  ably  mastering 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S    CHAMPION.  35 

the  minds  of  the  leaders  of  both  the  Republican  and  Democratic 
parties  who  held  conferences  with  him.  The  excited  and  persistent 
cry  for  war  by  those  who  did  not  expect  to  go  to  the  front,  reminded 
one  of  the  words  of  an  American  wit :  "  There  are  some  men  who 
are  invincible  in  peace  and  invisible  in  war !  "  But  the  President, 
having  been  upon  the  battlefield,  knew  the  horrors  of  war  ;  and, 
under  divine  guidance,  he  was  inflexible  in  his  determination  to  resort 
to  all  honorable  means  looking  to  a  peaceable  settlement  of  this  grave 
question  before,  as  the  responsible  executive  of  this  nation,  he 
requested  Congress  to  give  him  power  to  intervene  in  Cuba.  His 
delay  in  communicating  with  Congress  strained  and  tested  the 
patience  of  some  of  his  political  friends,  who  thought  that  the 
destruction  of  the  battleship  "  Maine  "  should  brush  aside  all  diplo- 
matic negotiations,  and  that  immediate  steps  should  be  taken  to  put 
an  end  to  the  Cuban  trouble  ;  but  history  will  prove  that  the  President 
acted  with  wise  conservatism. 

In  transmitting  to  Congress  the  report  of  the  United  States 
Naval  Court  of  Inquiry  on  the  loss  of  the  battleship  "  Maine," 
President  McKinley  presented  all  the  testimony  of  the  Court.  In 
each  house  of  Congress  the  President's  communication  was  referred  to 
the  Foreign  Committee  and  no  further  action  was  taken. 

It  was  on  April  n,  1898,  that  President  McKinley  sent  the 
following  message  to  Congress  : 

"  To  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  : 

"  Obedient  to  that  precept  of  the  Constitution  which  commands 
the  President  to  give  from  time  to  time  to  the  Congress  information 
of  the  state  of  the  Union,  and  to  recommend  to  their  consideration 
such  measures  as  he  shall  judge  necessary  and  expedient,  it  becomes 
my  duty  now  to  address  your  body  with  regard  to  the  grave  crisis  that 
has  arisen  in  the  relations  of  the  United  States  to  Spain  by  reason  of 
the  warfare  that  for  more  than  three  years  has  raged  in  the  neighbor- 
ing island  of  Cuba.  I  do  so  because  of  the  intimate  connection  of 
the  Cuban  question  with  the  state  of  our  own  Union  and  the  grave 
relation  the  course  which  it  is  now  incumbent  upon  the  nation  to 
adopt  must  needs  bear  to  the  traditional  policy  of  our  government  if 
it  is  to  accord  with  the  precepts  laid  down  by  the  founders  of  the 


36  COLUMBIA'S    WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

Republic,  and  religiously  observed  by  succeeding  Administrations  to 
the  present  day. 

"The  present  revolution  is  but  the  successor  of  other  similar 
insurrections  which  have  occurred  in  Cuba  against  the  dominion  of 
Spain,  extending  over  a  period  of  nearly  half  a  century,  each  of 
which,  during  its  progress,  has  subjected  the  United  States  to  great 
effort  and  expense  in  enforcing  its  neutrality  laws,  caused  enormous 
losses  to  American  trade  and  commerce,  caused  irritation,  annoyance 
and  disturbance  among  our  citizens,  and  by  the  exercise  of  cruel, 
barbarous  and  uncivilized  practices  of  warfare  shocked  the  sensibili- 
ties and  offended  the  humane  sympathies  of  our  people. 

Cuba   Ravaged   by  Fire  and  Sword  and  a   Prosperous  Community   Reduced  to 
Comparative  Want. 

"Since  the  present  revolution  began  in  February,  1895,  this 
country  has  seen  the  fertile  domain  at  our  threshold  ravaged  by  fire 
and  sword  in  the  course  of  a  struggle  unequaled  in  the  history  of  the 
island,  and  rarely  paralleled  as  to  the  number  of  the  combatants  and 
the  bitterness  of  the  contest  by  revolution  of  modern  times  where  a 
dependent  people,  striving  to  be  free,  have  been  opposed  by  the  power 
of  the  sovereign  State.  Our  people  have  beheld  a  once  prosperous 
community  reduced  to  comparative  want,  its  lucrative  commerce 
virtually  paralyzed,  its  exceptional  productiveness  diminished,  its 
fields  laid  waste,  its  mills  in  ruins  and  its  people  perishing  by  tens  of 
thousands  from  hunger  and  destitution.  We  have  found  ourselves 
constrained,  in  the  observance  of  that  strict  neutrality  which  our 
laws  enjoin  and  which  the  law  of  nations  commands,  to  police  our 
own  waters  and  watch  our  own  seaports  in  prevention  of  any  unlaw- 
ful act  in  aid  of  the  Cubans.  Our  trade  has  suffered,  the  capital 
invested  by  our  citizens  in  Cuba  has  been  largely  lost,  and  the  temper 
and  forbearance  of  our  people  have  been  so  sorely  tried  as  to  beget  a 
perilous  unrest  among  our  own  citizens,  which  has  inevitably  found 
its  expression  from  time  to  time  in  the  national  legislature,  so  that 
issues  wholly  external  to  our  own  body  politic  engross  attention  and 
stand  in  the  way  of  that  close  devotion  to  domestic  advancement  that 
becomes  a  self-contained  commonwealth  whose  primal  maxim  has 
been  the  avoidance  of  foreign  entanglements.  All  this  must  needs 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION. 


37 


awaken,  and  has  indeed  aroused,  the  utmost  concern  on  the  part  of 
this  Government,  as  well  during  my  predecessor's  term  as  in  my  own. 
"In  April,  1896,  the  evils  from  which  our  country  suffered 
through  the  Cuban  war  became  so  onerous  that  my  predecessor  made 
an  effort  to  bring  about  a  peace  through  the  mediation  of  this 
government  in  any  way  that  might  tend  to  an  honorable  adjustment 
of  the  contest 
between  Spain 
and  her  revolt- 
ed colony,  on 
the  basis  of 
some  effective 
scheme  of  self- 
government 
for  Cuba  under 
the  flag  and 
sovereignty  of 
Spain.  It  fail- 
ed through  the 
refusal  of  the 
Spanish  gov- 
ernment then 
in  power  to 
consider  any 
form  of  media- 
tion or  indeed 
any  plan  of 
settlement 
which  did  not 
begin  with  the 
actual  submis- 
sion of  the  in- 
surgents to  the 
mother  coun- 
try, and  then  only  on  such  terms  as  Spain  herself  might  see  fit  to 
grant.  The  war  continued  unabated. 


PRESIDENT  M'KINLEY, 

(From  a  photograph,  taken  immediately  after  he  signed  the 
$50,000,000  Naval  Appropriation  Bill}. 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


Weyler's   Policy  Added  to  the  Horrors  of   Strife  a   New  and    Inhuman   Phase. 

"The  resistance  of  the  insurgents  was  in  no  wise  diminished. 
The  efforts  of  Spain  were  increased,  both  by  the  dispatch  of  fresh 
levies  to  Cuba  and  by  the  addition  to  the  horrors  of  the  strife  of  a 

new  and  in- 
human phase, 
happily  un- 
precedented 
in  the  modern 
history  of  civ- 
ilized  Chris- 
tian peoples. 
The  policy  of 
devastation 
and  concen- 
tration inaug- 
urated by  the 
captain-gen- 
eral'sbando  of 
October  21, 
1896,  in  the 
province  of 
Pinar  del  Rio, 
was  thence  ex- 
tended to  em- 
brace all  of 
the  island  to 
which  the 
power  of  the 
Spanish  arms 
was  able  to 

reach  by  occupation  or  by  military  operations.  The  peasantry, 
including  all  dwelling  in  the  open  agricultural  interior,  were 
driven  into  the  garrison  towns  or  isolated  places  held  by  the 
troops.  The  raising  and  movement  of  provisions  of  all  kinds  were 
interdicted.  The  fields  were  laid  waste,  dwellings  unroofed  and 
fired,  mills  destroyed,  and,  in  short,  everything  that  could  desolate 


HON.    WILLIAM    R.    DAY. 

Successor  to  Hon.  John  Sherman,  Secretary  of  State. 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION.  39 

the  land  and  render  it  unfit  for  human  habitation  or  support  was 
commanded  by  one  or  the  other  of  the  contending  parties  and 
executed  by  all  the  powers  at  their  disposal. 

"  By  the  time  the  present  administration  took  office,  a  year  ago, 
recon centra tion — so  called — had  been  made  effective  over  the  better 
part  of  the  four  central  and  western  provinces,  Santa  Clara,  Matan- 
zas,  Havana  and  Pinar  del  Rio.  The  agricultural  population,  to  the 
estimated  number  of  300,000  or  more,  was  herded  within  the  towns 
and  their  immediate  vicinage,  deprived  of  the  means  of  support, 
rendered  destitute  of  shelter,  left  poorly  clad  and  exposed  to  the 
most  unsanitary  conditions.  As  the  scarcity  of  food  increased  with 
the  devastation  of  the  depopulated  areas  of  production,  destitution 
and  want  became  misery  and  starvation. 

u  Month  by  month  the  death  rate  increased  in  an  alarming  ratio. 
By  March,  1897,  according  to  conservative  estimates  from  official 
Spanish  sources,  the  mortality  among  the  reconcentrados  from 
starvation  and  the  diseases  thereto  incident  exceeded  fifty  per  cent  of 
their  total  number  No  practical  relief  was  accorded  to  the  destitute. 
The  overburdened  towns,  already  suffering  from  the  general  dearth, 
could  give  no  aid.  So-called  '  zones  of  cultivation,'  established 
within  the  immediate  area  of  effective  military  control,  about  the 
cities  and  fortified  camps,  proved  illusory  as  a  remedy  for  the  suffering. 
The  unfortunates  being  for  the  most  part  women  and  children,  with 
aged  and  helpless  men,  enfeebled  by  disease  and  hunger,  could  not 
have  tilled  the  soil  without  tools,  seed  or  shelter,  for  their  own 
support  and  for  the  support  of  the  cities.  Reconcentration,  adopted 
avowedly  as  a  war  measure  in  order  to  cut  off  the  resources  of  the 
insurgents,  worked  its  predestined  result. 

Steps  of  This  Government  for  Settlement  of  a  Condition  That  Was  Not  Civilized 
Warfare,  but  Extermination. 

"  As  I  said  in  my  message  of  last  December,  it  was  not  civilized 
warfare,  it  was  extermination.  The  only  peace  it  could  beget  was 
that  of  the  wilderness  and  the  grave.  Meanwhile  the  military 
situation  in  the  island  had  undergone  a  noticeable  change.  The 
extraordinary  activity  that  characterized  the  second  year  of  war, 
when  the  insurgents  invaded  even  the  hitherto  unharmed  fields  of 


4o 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR    FOR   CUBA. 


Pinar  del  Rio,  and  carried  havoc  and  destruction  up  to  the  walls  of 
the  city  of  Havana  itself,  had  relapsed  into  a  dogged  struggle  in  the 
central  and  eastern  provinces.  The  Spanish  arms  regained  a  measure 
of  control  in  Pinar  del  Rio  and  parts  of  Havana,  but,  under  the 
existing  conditions  of  the  rural  country,  without  immediate  improve- 
ment of  their  productive  situation.  Even  thus  partially  restricted, 
the  revolutionists  held  their  own,  and  their  conquest  and  submission, 
put  forward  by  Spain  as  the  essential  and  sole  basis  of  peace,  seemed 

' 


THE  UNITED  STATES   CAPITOL  AT  WASHINGTON. 

as  far  distant  as  at  the  outset.  In  this  state  of  affairs  my  administra- 
tion found  itself  confronted  with  a  grave  problem  of  its  duty.  My 
message  of  last  December  reviewed  the  situation,  and  narrated  the 
steps  taken,  with  a  view  of  relieving  its  acuteness  and  opening  the 
way  to  some  form  of  honorable  settlement. 

"  The  assassination  of  the  Prime  Minister,  Canovas,  led  to  a 
change  of  government  in  Spain.  The  former  administration,  pledged 
to  subjugation  without  concession,  gave  place  to  that  of  a  more 
liberal  party,  committed  long  in  advance  to  a  policy  of  reform 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION.  41 

involving  the  wider  principles  of  home  rule  for  Cuba  and  Porto  Rico. 
The  overtures  of  the  government,  made  through  its  new  envoy,  Gen- 
eral Woodford,  and  looking  to  an  immediate  and  effective  ameliora- 
tion of  the  condition  of  the  island,  although  not  accepted  to  the 
extent  of  admitted  mediation  in  any  shape,  were  met  by  assurances 
that  home  rule  in  an  advanced  phase  would  be  forthwith  offered  to 
Cuba  without  waiting  for  the  war  to  end,  and  that  more  humane 
methods  should  thenceforth  prevail  in  the  conduct  of  hostilities. 
Coincidentally  with  these  declarations  the  new  government  of  Spain 
continued  and  completed  the  policy  already  begun  by  its  predecessor 
of  testifying  friendly  regard  for  this  nation  by  releasing  American 
citizens  held  under  one  charge  or  another,  connected  with  the  insur- 
rection, so  that,  by  the  end  of  November,  not  a  single  person  entitled 
in  any  way  to  our  national  protection  remained  in  a  Spanish  prison. 

Negotiations  Progressed,   but   in   the   Meantime   Destitution   and    Death    Also 

Continued. 

"  While  these  negotiations  were  progressing  the  increasing  desti- 
tution of  the  unfortunate  reconcentrados  and  the  alarming  mortality 
among  them  claimed  earnest  attention.  The  success  which  had 
attended  the  limited  measure  of  relief  extended  to  the  suffering 
American  citizens  among  them  by  the  judicious  expenditure  through 
the  consular  agencies  of  the  money  appropriated  expressly  for  their 
succor  by  the  joint  resolution  approved  May  4,  1897,  prompted  the 
humane  extension  of  a  similar  scheme  of  aid  to  the  great  body  of 
sufferers.  A  suggestion  to  this  end  was  acquiesced  in  by  the  Spanish 
authorities.  On  the  twenty-fourth  of  December  last,  I  caused  to  be 
issued  an  appeal  to  the  American  people,  inviting  contributions  in 
money  or  in  kind  for  the  succor  of  the  starving  sufferers  in  Cuba, 
following  this  on  the  eighth  of  January  by  a  similar  public  announce- 
ment of  the  formation  of  a  Central  Cuban  Relief  Committee,  with 
headquarters  in  New  York  City,  composed  of  three  members  repre- 
senting the  American  National  Red  Cross  and  the  religious  and 
business  elements  of  the  community. 

"The  efforts  of  the  committee  have  been  untiring  and  have 
accomplished  much.  Arrangements  for  free  transportation  to  Cuba 
have  greatly  aided  the  charitable  work.  The  president  of  the 


42  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

American  Red  Cross  and  representatives  of  other  contributory 
organizations  have  generously  visited  Cuba  and  co-operated  with  the 
Consul-General  and  the  local  authorities  to  make  effective  distribu- 
tion of  the  relief  collected  through  the  efforts  of  the  Central  Com- 
mittee. Nearly  $200,000  in  money  and  supplies  has  already  reached 
the  sufferers,  and  more  is  forthcoming.  The  supplies  are  admitted 
duty  free,  and  transportation  to  the  interior  has  been  arranged  so  that 
the  relief,  at  first  necessarily  confined  to  Havana  and  the  larger  cities, 
is  now  extended  through  most  if  not  all  of  the  towns  where  suffering 
exists.  Thousands  of  lives  have  already  been  saved.  The  necessity 
for  a  change  in  the  condition  of  the  reconcentrados  is  recognized  by 
the  Spanish  government. 

"  Within  a  few  days  past  the  orders  of  General  Weyler  have  been 
revoked,  and  the  reconcentrados  are,  it  is  said,  to  be  permitted  to 
return  to  their  homes,  and  aided  to  resume  the  self-supporting 
pursuits  of  peace ;  public  works  have  been  ordered  to  gave  them 
employment,  and  a  sum  of  $600,000  has  been  appropriated  for  their 
relief. 

President  Asked  of  Spain  an  Armistice  to   Last  Until  October  i. 
Reply  Evasive. 

"  The  war  in  Cuba  is  of  such  a  nature  that,  short  of  subjugation 
or  extermination,  a  final  military  victory  for  either  side  seems  imprac- 
ticable. The  alternative  lies  in  the  physical  exhaustion  of  the  one  or 
the  other  party,  or  perhaps  of  both,  a  condition  which  in  effect  ended 
the  ten  years'  war  by  the  truce  of  San  Juan.  The  prospect  of  such 
a  protraction  and  conclusion  of  the  present  strife  is  a  contingency 
hardly  to  be  contemplated  with  equanimity  by  the  civilized  world, 
and  least  of  all  by  the  United  States,  affected  and  concerned  as 
we  are,  deeply  and  intimately,  by  its  very  existence.  Realizing 
this,  it  appeared  to  be  my  duty  in  a  spirit  of  true  friendliness,  no 
less  to  Spain  than  to  the  Cubans,  who  have  so  much  to  lose  by  the 
prolongation  of  the  struggle,  to  seek  to  bring  about  an  immediate 
termination  of  the  war.  As  a  result  of  much  representation  and 
correspondence  to  this  end  I  submitted  on  the  twenty-seventh  ultimo, 
through  the  United  States  Minister  at  Madrid  propositions  to  the 
Spanish  government  looking  to  an  armistice  until  October  i  for  the 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S    CHAMPION. 


43 


negotiation  of  peace  with  the  good  offices  of  the  President.  In 
addition  I  asked  the  immediate  revocation  of  the  order  of  reconcen- 
tration  so  as  to  permit  the  people  to  return  to  their  farms  and  the 


SECRETARY   LONG   IN   HIS   OFFICE   AT  THE   NAVY   DEPARTMENT. 

needy  to  be  relieved  with  provisions  and  supplies,  the  United  States 
co-operating  with  the  Spanish  authorities  so  as  to  afford  full  relief. 
The  reply  of  the  Spanish  Cabinet  was  received  on  the  night  of  the 


44 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


thirty-first  ultimo.  It  offers,  as  the  means  to  bring  about  peace  in 
Cuba,  to  confide  the  preparation  thereof  to  the  insular  Parliament, 
inasmuch  as  the  concurrence  of  that  body  would  be  necessary  to  reach 
a  final  result,  it  being,  however,  understood  that  the  powers  reserved 
by  the  constitution  to  the  central  government  are  not  lessened  or 
diminished. 

"  As  the  Cuban  Parliament  does  not  meet  until  the  fourth  of 
May  next,  the  Spanish  government  would  not  object,  for  its  part,  to 
accept  at  once  a  suspension  of  hostilities  if  asked  for  by  the  insur- 
gents from  the  General-in-Chief,  to  whom  it  would  pertain,  in  such 

case,  to  determine   the   duration 
and  conditions  of  the.  armistice. 

"  The  propositions  submitted 
by  General  Woodford'  and  the 
reply  of  the  Spanish  government 
were  both  in  the  form  of  brief 
memoranda,  the  texts  of  which 
are  before  me  and  substantially 
in  the  language  above  given. 
The  function  of  the  Cuban  Par- 
liament in  the  matter  of  prepar- 
ing peace  and  the  manner  of  its 
doing  so  are  not  expressed  in  the 
Spanish  memorandum,  but  from 
General  Woodford's  explanatory 
reports  of  preliminary  discussions 
preceding  the  final  conference  it 

is  understood  that  the  Spanish  government  stands  ready  to  give  the 
insular  Congress  full  powers  to  settle  the  terms  of  peace  with  the 
insurgents — whether  by  direct  negotiation  or  indirectly  by  means  of 
legislation  does  not  appear. 

"  With  this  last  overture  in  the  direction  of  immediate  peace, 
and  its  disappointing  reception  by  Spain,  the  Executive  was  brought 
to  the  end  of  his  effort. 

"  In  my  Annual  Message  of  December  I  said  :  '  Of  the  untried 
measures  there  remain  only — Recognition  of  the  insurgents  as 
belligerents,  recognition  of  the  independence  of  Cuba,  neutral 


J.    ADDISON   PORTER, 

Secretary  to  the  President. 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION,  45 

intervention  to  end  the  war  by  imposing  a  rational  compromise 
between  the  contestants,  and  intervention  in  favor  of  one  or  the 
other  party.  I  speak  not  of  forcible  annexation,  for  that  cannot  be 
thought  of,  which  by  our  code  of  morality  would  be  criminal 
aggression.' 

"  Thereupon  I  reviewed  these  alternatives,  in  the  light  of  Presi- 
dent Grant's  measured  words,  uttered  in  1875,  when,  after  seven  years 
of  sanguinary,  destructive  and  cruel  hostilities  in  Cuba,  he  reached 
the  conclusion  that  the  recognition  of  the  independence  of  Cuba  was 
impracticable  and  indefensible  ;  and  that  the  recognition  of  belliger- 
ence was  not  warranted  by  the  facts  according  to  tests  of  public  law. 

"  I  commented  especially  upon  the  latter  aspect  of  the  question, 
pointing  out  the  inconvenience  and  positive  dangers  of  a  recognition 
of  belligerence,  which,  while  adding  to  the  already  onerous  burdens 
of  neutrality  within  our  own  jurisdiction,  could  not  in  any  way 
extend  our  influence  or  effective  offices  in  the  territory  of  hostilities. 

"  Nothing  has  since  appeared  to  change  my  view  in  this  regard, 
and  I  recognize  as  fully  now  as  then  that  the  issuance  of  a  proclama- 
tion of  neutrality  by  which  process  the  so-called  recognition  of  bel- 
ligerency is  published,  could  of  itself  and  unattended  by  other  action 
accomplish  nothing  toward  the  one  end  for  which  we  labor — the 
instant  pacification  of  Cuba  and  the  cessation  of  the  misery  that 
afflicts  the  island. 

History  to  Give   Light  on  Question   of  Recognition  of  Independence  of 
Insurgents. 

"  Turning  to  the  question  of  recognizing  at  this  time  the  inde- 
pendence of  the  present  insurgent  government  in  Cuba,  we  find  safe 
precedent  in  our  history  from  an  early  day.  They  are  well  summed 
up  in  President  Jackson's  message  to  Congress,  December  21,  1836, 
on  the  subject  of  recognition  of  the  independence  of  Texas.  He 
said  :  '  In  all  the  contests  that  have  arisen  out  of  the  revolutions  of 
France,  out  of  the  disputes  relating  to  the  crowns  of  Portugal  and 
Spain,  out  of  the  separation  of  the  American  possessions  of  both 
from  the  European  governments  and  out  of  the  numerous  and  con- 
stantly occurring  struggles  for  dominion  in  Spanish- America,  so 
wisely  consistent  with  our  just  principles  has  been  the  action  of  our 


46 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR    FOR   CUBA. 


government  that  \ve  have,  under  the  most  critical  circumstances 
avoided  all  censure,  and  encountered  no  other  evil  than  that  produced 
by  a  transient  estrangement  of  good  will  in  those  against  whom  we 
have  been  by  force  of  evidence  compelled  to  decide. 

"  '  It  has  thus  made  known  to  the  world  that  the  uniform  policy 
and  practice  of  the  United  States  is  to  avoid  all  interference  in  dis- 
putes which  merely  relate  to  the  internal  government  of  other 
nations,  and  eventually  to  recognize  the  authority  of  the  prevailing 
party,  without  reference  to  our  particular  interests  and  views,  or  to 

the  merits  of  the  original  con- 
troversy. But  on  this,  as  on 
every  other  trying  occasion, 
safety  is  to  be  found  in  a  rigid 
adherence  to  principle.  In  the 
contest  between  Spain  and  the 
revolted  colonies  we  stood  aloof, 
and  waited  not  only  until  the 
ability  of  the  new  States  to  pro- 
tect themselves  was  fully  estab- 
lished, but  until  the  danger  of 
their  being  again  subjugated 
had  entirely  passed  away. 
Then,  and  not  until  then,  were 
they  recognized. 

"  '  Such  was  our  course  in 
regard  to  Mexico  herself.  It  is 
true  that  with  regard  to  Texas 
the  civil  authority  of  Mexico 

has  been  expelled,  its  invading  army  defeated,  the  chief  of  the  Repub- 
lic himself  captured,  and  all  present  power  to  control  the  newly  organ- 
ized government  of  Texas  annihilated  within  its  confines;  but,  on  the 
other  hand,  there  is,  in  appearance  at  least,  an  immense  disparity  of 
physical  force  on  the  side  of  Texas.  The  Mexican  Republic  under 
another  executive  is  rallying  its  forces  under  a  new  leader,  and  men- 
acing a  fresh  invasion  to  recover  its  lost  dominion.  Upon  this  issue 
of  this  threatened  invasion  the  independence  of  Texas  may  be  con- 
sidered as  suspended,  and  were  there  nothing  peculiar  in  the  relative 


ASSISTANT  SECRETARY   O.    t,.    PKUDEN. 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION.  47 

situation  of  the  United  States  and  Texas,  our  acknowledgment  of 
its  independence  in  such  a  crisis  could  scarcely  be  regarded  as  con- 
sistent with  that  prudent  reserve  with  which  we  have  hitherto  held 
ourselves  bound  to  treat  all  similar  questions.' 

Andrew  Jackson  and   Martin  Van   Buren  Upon  the  Independence  of  Texas. 

"  Thereupon  Andrew  Jackson  proceeded  to  consider  the  risk  that 
there  might  be  imputed  to  the  United  States  motives  of  selfish  interest 
in  view  of  the  former  claim  on  our  part  to  the  territory  of  Texas,  and 
the  avowed  purpose  of  the  Texans  in  seeking  recognition  of  indepen- 
dence as  an  incident  to  the  incorporation  of  Texas  in  the  Union, 
concluding  thus :  '  Prudence,  therefore,  seems  to  dictate  that  we 
should  still  stand  aloof  and  maintain  our  present  attitude,  if  not  until 
Mexico  itself,  or  one  of  the  great  foreign  powers,  shall  recognize  the 
independence  of  the  new  government,  at  least  until  the  lapse  of  time 
or  the  course  of  events  shall  have  proved  beyond  cavil  or  dispute  the 
ability  of  the  people  of  that  country  to  maintain  the  separate  sove- 
reignty and  to  uphold  the  government  constituted  by  them.  Neither 
of  the  contending  parties  can  justly  complain  of  this  course.  By 
pursuing  it  we  are  but  carrying  out  the  long-established  policy  of  our 
government,  a  policy  which  has  secured  to  us  respect  and  influence 
abroad  and  inspired  confidence  at  home.' 

"  These  are  the  words  of  the  resolute  and  patriotic  Jackson. 
They  are  evidence  that  the  United  States,  in  addition  to  the  tests 
imposed  by  public  law  as  to  the  condition  of  the  recognition  of  inde- 
pendence by  a  neutral  State  (to  wit :  that  the  revolted  State  shall 
4  constitute  in  fact  a  body  politic,  having  a  government  in  substance 
as  well  as  in  name,  possessed  of  the  elements  of  the  stability,  and  form- 
ing de  facto,  if  left  to  itself,  a  State  among  the  nations  reasonably  capa- 
ble of  discharging  the  duties  of  a  State  '),  has  imposed  for  its  own  gov- 
ernance, in  dealing  with  cases  like  these,  the  further  condition  that 
recognition  of  independent  statehood  is  not  due  to  a  revolted  depen- 
dency until  the  danger  of  its  being  again  subjugated  by  the  parent 
State  has  entirely  passed  away.  This  extreme  test  was,  in  fact, 
applied  in  the  case  of  Texas.  The  Congress  to  whom  President 
Jackson  referred  the  question  as  one  '  probably  leading  to  war,'  and 
therefore  a  proper  subject  for  '  a  previous  understanding  with  that 


48  COLUMBIA'S  WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

body  by  whom  war  can  alone  be  declared,  and  by  whom  all  the  pro- 
visions for  sustaining  its  perils  must  be  furnished,'  left  the  matter  of 
the  recognition  of  Texas  to  the  discretion  of  the  Executive,  provid- 
ing merely  for  the  sending  of  a  diplomatic  agent  when  the  President 
should  be  satisfied  that  the  republic  of  Texas  had  become  'an 
independent  State.' 

"  It  was  so  recognized  by  President  Van  Buren,  who  commis- 
sioned a  charge  d*1  affaires  on  March  7,  1837,  after  Mexico  had 
abandoned  an  attempt  to  reconquer  the  Texan  territory,  and  there 
was  at  the  time.no  bona  fide  contest  going  on  between  the  insurgent 
province  and  its  former  sovereign. 

Recognition  of  Cuban  Republic  Not  Necessary  to  Enable  the  United  States  to 
Pacify  the  Island. 

"  I  said  in  my  message  of  December  last :  '  It  is  to  be  seriously 
considered  whether  the  Cuban  insurrection  possesses  beyond  dispute 
the  attribute  of  Statehood,  which  alone  can  demand  the  recognition 
of  belligerency  in  its  favor.' 

"  The  same  requirement  must  certainly  be  no  less  seriously  con- 
sidered when  the  graver  issue  of  recognizing  independence  is  in 
question,  for  no  less  positive  test  can  be  applied  to  the  greater  act 
than  to  the  lesser,  while  on  the  other  hand  the  influences  and  conse- 
quences of  the  struggle  upon  the  internal  policy  of  the  recognizing 
State,  which  form  important  factors  when  the  recognition  of  the 
belligerency  is  concerned,  are  secondary,  if  not  rightly  eliminable, 
factors  when  the  real  question  is  whether  the  community  claiming 
recognition  is  or  is  not  independent  beyond  peradventure.  Nor  from 
the  standpoint  of  experience  do  I  think  it  would  be  wise  or  prudent 
for  this  government  to  recognize  at  the  present  time  the  independence 
of  the  so-called  Cuban  Republic.  Such  recognition  is  not  necessary 
in  order  to  enable  the  United  States  to  intervene  and  pacify  the 
island. 

"  To  commit  this  country  now  to  the  recognition  of  any  partic- 
ular government  in  Cuba  might  subject  us  to  embarrassing  conditions 
of  international  obligation  toward  the  organization  so  recognized. 
In  case  of  intervention  our  conduct  would  be  subject  to  the  approval 
or  disapproval  of  such  government ;  we  would  be  required  to  submit 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION. 


49 


to  its  direction  and  to  assume  to  it  the  mere  relation  of  a  friendly 
ally.  When  it  shall  appear  hereafter  that  there  is  within  the  island  a 
government  capable  of  performing  the  duties  and  discharging  the 
functions  of  a  separate  nation  and  having  as  a  matter  of  fact  the 
proper  forms  and  attributes  of  nationality,  such  government  can  be 
promptly  and  easily 
recognized,  and  the 
relations  and  inter- 
ests of  the  United 
States  with  such  na- 
tion adjusted. 

"  There  remain 
the  alternative  forms 
of  intervention  to 
end  the  war,  either 
as  an  impartial  neu- 
tral by  imposing  a 
rational  compromise 
between  the  contest- 
ants or  as  the  active 
ally  of  the  one  party 
or  the  other. 

"As  to  the  first, 
it  is  not  to  be  forgot- 
ten that  during  the 
last  few  months  the 
relation  of  the  United 
States  has  virtually 


AJ.-GEN.    F1TZHIGH   LEE, 

Our  Consul-General  in  Cuba  at  the  time  of  the  "Maine  " 
disaster. 


been  one  of  friendly 
intervention  in  many  ways,  each  effort  of  itself  being  conclusive, 
but  all  tending  to  the  exertion  of  a  potential  influence  toward  an 
ultimate  pacific  result  just  and  honorable  to  all  interests  concerned. 
The  spirit  of  all  our  acts  hitherto  has  been  an  earnest,  unselfish 
desire  for  peace  and  prosperity  in  Cuba,  untarnished  by  differences 
between  the  United  States  and  Spain,  and  unstained  by  the  blood  of 
American  citizens. 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


Grounds  for  Forcible  Intervention  of   the   United    States  as    a  Neutral  to  Stop 

the  War. 

"  The  forcible  intervention  of  the  United  States  as  a  neutral  to 
stop  the  war,  according  to  the  large  dictates  of  humanity,  and  follow- 
ing many  historical  precedents  where  neighboring  states  have 
interfered  to  check  the  hopeless  sacrifice  of  life  by  internecine 
conflicts  beyond  their  borders,  is  justifiable  on  rational  grounds.  It 

involves,  however,  hostile 
constraint  upon  both  the 
parties  to  the  contract  as 
well  to  enforce  a  truce  as  to 
guide  the  eventual  settle- 
\  ment. 

"  The  grounds  for  such 
intervention  may  be  briefly 
summarized  as  follows  : 

"  First — In  the  cause  of 
humanity  and  to  put  an  end 
to  the  barbarities,  starvation 
and  horrible   miseries    now 
existing   there,    and   which 
the  parties  to  the  conflict  are 
either  unable  or  unwilling 
to   stop  or  mitigate.     It    is 
no  answer  to  say  this  is  all 
in  another  country,  belong- 
ing to  another  nation,  and  is 
therefore  none  of  our  busi- 
ness. It  is  specially  our  duty, 
for  it  is  right  at  our  door. 
"  Second — We  owe  it  to  our  citizens  in  Cuba  to  afford  them  that 
protection  and  indemnity  for  life  and  property  which  no  government 
there  can  or  will  afford,  and  to  that  end  to  terminate  the  conditions 
that  deprive  them  of  legal  protection. 

"  Third — Right  to  intervene  may  be  justified  by  the  very 
serious  injury  to  the  commerce,  trade  and  business  of  our  people,  and 
by  the  wanton  destruction  of  property  and  devastation  of  the  island. 


MR.    CORTELYOU, 

Executive  Clerk  at  the  White  House. 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION.  51 

"  Fourth,  and  which  is  of  the  most  importance — The  present 
condition  of  affairs  in  Cuba  is  a  constant  menace  to  our  peace,  and 
entails  upon  this  government  an  enormous  expense.  With  such  a 
conflict  waged  for  years  in  an  island  so  near  us,  and  with  which  our 
people  have  such  trade  and  business  relations,  when  the  lives  and 
liberty  of  our  citizens  are  in  constant  danger,  and  their  property  and 
themselves  ruined  ;  when  our  trading  vessels  are  liable  to  seizure  and 
are  seized  at  our  very  door  by  warships  of  a  foreign  nation,  the 
expeditions  of  filibustering  that  we  are  powerless  to  prevent  altogether, 
and  the  irritating  questions  and  entanglements  thus  arising — all 
these  and  others  that  I  need  not  mention,  with  the  resulting  strained 
relations,  are  a  constant  menace  to  our  peace  and  compel  us  to  keep 
on  a  semi-war  with  a  nation  with  which  we  are  at  peace. 

Spain  Proposed  International  Arbitration  to  Ascertain  Cause  of  the  Destruction 
of  the  "Maine." 

"  These  elements  of  danger  and  disorder  already  pointed  out 
have  been  strikingly  illustrated  by  a  tragic  event  which  has  deeply 
and  justly  moved  the  American  people.  I  have  already  transmitted 
to  Congress  the  report  of  the  Naval  Court  of  Inquiry  on  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  battleship  "  Maine  "  in  the  harbor  of  Havana  during  the 
night  of  the  fifteenth  of  February.  The  destruction  of  that  noble  vessel 
has  filled  the  national  heart  with  inexpressible  horror.  Two  hun- 
dred and  fifty-eight  brave  sailors  and  marines  and  two  officers  of  our 
navy,  reposing  in  the  fancied  security  of  a  friendly  harbor,  have 
been  hurled  to  death,  grief  and  want  brought  to  their  homes,  and 
sorrow  to  the  nation. 

"  The  Naval  Court  of  Inquiry,  which  it  is  needless  to  say,  com- 
mands the  unqualified  confidence  of  the  government,  was  unanimous 
in  its  conclusion  that  the  destruction  of  the  c  Maine '  was  caused  by 
an  exterior  explosion,  that  of  a  submarine  mine.  It  did  not  assume 
to  place  responsibility.  That  remains  to  be  fixed. 

"In  any  event,  the  destruction  of  the  'Maine,'  by  whatever 
exterior  cause,  is  a  patent  and  impressive  proof  of  a  state  of  things  in 
Cuba  that  is  intolerable.  That  condition  is  thus  shown  to  be  such  that 
the  Spanish  government  cannot  assure  safety  and  security  to  a  vessel 


52  COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR   CUBA. 

of  the  American  Navy  in  the  harbor  of  Havana  on  a  mission  of 
peace  and  rightfully  there. 

"  Further  referring  in  this  connection  to  recent  diplomatic  corre- 
spondence, a  dispatch  from  our  Minister  to  Spain  of  the  twenty-sixth 
ultimo  contained  the  statement  that  the  Spanish  Minister  for  Foreign 
Affairs  assured  him  positively  that  Spain  will  do  all  that  the  highest 
honor  and  justice  require  in  the  matter  of  the  *  Maine.' 

"  The  reply  above  referred  to  on  the  thirty-first  ultimo  also  con- 
tained an  expression  of  the  readiness  of  Spain  to  submit  to  an  arbi- 
tration all  the  differences  which  can  arise  in  this  matter,  which  is 
subsequently  explained  by  the  note  of  the  Spanish  Minister  at 
Washington  of  the  tenth  instant,  as  follows  :  '  As  to  the  question  of 
fact  which  springs  from  the  diversity  of  views  between  the  report  of 
the  American  and  Spanish  boards,  Spain  proposes  that  the  fact  be 
ascertained  by  an  impartial  investigation  by  experts,  whose  decision 
Spain  accepts  in  advance.'  To  this  I  have  made  no  reply. 

President  Grant  Upon  the  Revolt  of  1875,  and   President  Cleveland   Upon  the 
Present  Revolution. 

"  President  Grant,  in  1875,  after  discussing  the  phases  of  the 
contest  as  it  then  appeared,  and  its  hopeless  and  apparently  indefinite 
prolongation,  said  :  '  In  such  event  I  am  of  opinion  that  other  nations 
will  be  compelled  to  assume  the  responsibility  which  devolves  upon 
them,  and  to  seriously  consider  the  only  remaining  measure  possible — 
mediation  and  intervention.  Owing,  perhaps,  to  the  large  expanse 
of  water  separating  the  island  from  the  peninsula,  the  contending 
parties  appear  to  have  within  themselves  no  depository  of  common 
confidence  to  suggest  wisdom  when  passion  and  excitement  have 
their  sway  and  to  assume  the  part  of  peacemakers.' 

"  In  this  view  in  the  earlier  days  of  the  contest  the  good  offices 
of  the  United  States  as  a  mediator  were  tendered  in  good  faith, 
without  any  selfish  purpose,  in  the  interests  of  humanity,  and  in 
sincere  friendship  for  both  parties,  but  were  at  the  time  declined  by 
Spain,  with  the  declaration  nevertheless  that  at  a  future  time  they 
would  be  indispensable.  No  intimation  has  been  received  that  in 
the  opinion  of  Spain  that  time  has  been  reached,  and  yet  the  strife 
continues  with  all  its  dread  horrors  and  all  its  injuries  to  the  interests 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION.  53 

of  the  United  States  and  of  other  nations.  Each  party  seems  quite 
capable  of  working  great  injury  and  damage  to  the  other,  as  to  all 
the  relations  and  interests  dependent  on  the  existence  of  peace  in 
the  island,  but  they  seem  incapable  of  reaching  any  adjustment,  and 
both  have  thus  far  failed  of  achieving  any  success  whereby  one  party 
shall  possess  and  control  the  island  to  the  exclusion  of  the  other. 
Under  the  circumstances  the  agency  of  others,  either  by  mediation 
or  by  intervention,  seems  to  be  the  only  alternative  which  must, 
sooner  or  later,  be  invoked  for  the  termination  of  the  strife. 

"  In  the  last  annual  message  of  my  immediate  predecessor  during 
the  pending  struggle  it  was  said  : 

"'When  the  inability  of  Spain  to  deal  successfully  with  the 
insurrection  has  become  manifest,  and  it  is  demonstrated  that  her 
sovereignty  is  extinct  in  Cuba  for  all  purposes  of  its  rightful  exist- 
ence, and  when  a  hopeless  struggle  for  its  re-establishment  has  degen- 
erated into  a  strife  which  means  nothing  more  than  the  useless  sacrifice 
of  human  life  and  the  utter  destruction  of  the  very  subject  matter  of 
the  conflict,  a  situation  will  be  presented  in  which  our  obligations  to 
the  sovereignty  of  Spain  will  be  superseded  by  higher  obligations, 
which  we  can  hardly  hesitate  to  recognize  and  discharge.' 

President  McKinSey's  Hint  of  Intervention   in   His  Message  Last  December. 

"  Iii  my  Annual  Message  to  Congress  December  last,  speaking  to 
this  question,  I  said  : 

"  '  The  near  future  will  demonstrate  whether  the  indispensable 
condition  of  a  righteous  peace,  just  alike  to  the  Cubans  and  to  Spain, 
as  well  as  equitable  to  all  our  interests  so  intimately  involved  in  the 
welfare  of  Cuba,  is  likely  to  be  attained.  If  not,  the  exigency  of 
further  and  other  action  by  the  United  States  will  remain  to  be  taken. 
When  that  time  comes  that  action  will  be  determined  in  the  line  of 
indisputable  right  and  duty.  It  will  be  faced,  without  misgiving  or 
hesitancy,  in  the  light  of  the  obligation  this  government  owes  to 
itself,  to  the  people  who  have  confided  to  it  the  protection  of  their 
interests  and  honor,  and  to  humanity.  Sure  of  the  right,  keeping 
free  from  all  offence  ourselves,  actuated  only  by  upright  and  patriotic 
consideration,  moved  neither  by  passion  nor  selfishness,  the  govern- 
ment will  continue  its  watchful  care  over  the  rights  and  property 


54 


COLUMBIA'S    WAR    FOR    CUBA. 


of  American  citizens  and  will  abate  none  of  its  efforts  to  bring  about 
by  peaceful  agencies  a  peace  which  shall  be  honorable  and  enduring. 
If  it  shall  hereafter  appear  to  be  a  duty  imposed  by  our  obligations 
to  ourselves,  to  civilization  and  humanity,  to  intervene  with  force,  it 
shall  be  without  fault  on  our  part,  and  only  because  the  necessity  for 


TRANSPORTING   FOOD  SUPPLIES  IN  CUBA. 

In  many  places,  where  there  are  no  railroads,  this  primitive  method  of  transportation 

is  used. 

such  action  will  be  so  clear  as  to  command  the  support  and  approval 
of  the  civilized  world.' 

"  The  long  trial  has  proved  that  the  object  for  which  Spain  has 
waged  the  war  cannot  be  attained.  The  fire  of  insurrection  may 
flame  or  may  smoulder  with  varying  season,  but  it  has  not  been,  and 
it  is  plain  that  it  cannot  be,  extinguished  by  present  methods. 

"  The  only  hope  of  relief  and  repose  from  a  condition  which  can 
no  longer  be  endured  is  the  enforced  pacification  of  Cuba. 

"  In  the  name  of  humanity,  in  the  name  of  civilization,  in  behalf 
of  endangered  American  interests  which  give  us  the  right  and  the 
duty  to  speak  and  to  act,  the  war  in  Cuba  must  stop. 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION.  55' 

In  Conclusion  the    President  Asks  Congress  to    Empower  Him  to  Secure 
Termination  of   Hostilities,   and  to  Use  the  Army  and   Navy. 

"  In  view  of  the  facts  and  these  considerations  I  ask  Congress  to 
take  measures  to  secure  a  full  and  final  termination  of  hostilities 
between  the  government  of  Spain  and  the  people  of  Cuba,  and  to 
secure  in  the  island  the  establishment  of  a  stable  government  capable 
of  maintaining  order  and  observing  its  international  obligations, 
insuring  peace  and  tranquillity  and  the  security  of  its  citizens  as  well 
as  our  own,  and  to  use  the  military  and  naval  forces  of  the  United 
States  as  may  be  necessary  for  these  purposes.  And  in  the  interest 
of  humanity,  and  to  aid  in  preserving  the  lives  of  the  starving  people 
of  the  island,  I  recommend  that  the  distribution  of  food  and  supplies 
be  continued,  and  that  an  appropriation  be  made  out  of  the  public 
treasury  to  supplement  the  charity  of  our  citizens. 

"The  issue  is  now  with  the  Congress.  It  is  a  solemn  responsi- 
bility. We  have  exhausted  every  effort  to  relieve  the  intolerable 
condition  of  affairs  which  is  at  our  doors.  Prepared  to  execute  every 
obligation  imposed  upon  me  by  the  Constitution  and  the  law,  I  await 
your  action. 

"  Yesterday,  and  since  the  preparation  of  the  foregoing  message, 
official  information  was  received  by  me  that  the  latest  decree  of  the 
Queen  Regent  of  Spain  directs  General  Blanco,  in  order  to  prepare 
and  facilitate  peace,  to  proclaim  a  suspension  of  hostilities,  the  dura- 
tion and  details  of  which  have  not  yet  been  communicated  to  me. 

"  This  fact,  with  every  other  pertinent  consideration,  will,  I  am 
sure,  have  your  just  and  careful  attention  in  the  solemn  deliberations 
upon  which  you  are  about  to  enter.  If  this  measure  attains  a  suc- 
cessful result,  then  our  aspirations  as  a  Christian,  peace-loving  people 
will  be  realized. 

"If  it  fails  it  will  be  only  another  justification  for  our  contemplated 
action. 

"WILLIAM  McKINLEY. 

"  EXECUTIVE  MANSION,  April  //,  1898" 

The  President's  message  was  accompanied  by  the  consular  cor- 
respondence. It  was  prepared  in  response  to  a  resolution  of  inquiry 
adopted  by  both  the  House  and  the  Senate.  It  covers  the  communi- 
cations of  Consul-General  Lee,  at  Havana ;  Consul  McGarr,  at 


56  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

Cienfuegos  ;  Consul  Brice,  at  Matanzas  ;  Consul  Hyatt,  at  Santiago  de 
Cuba,  and  Consul  Barker,  at  Sagua  La  Grande.  These  consular 
communications  cover  near  sixty  thousand  words,  and  deal  largely 


A   SPANISH   DOORWAY   IN   CUBA. 

Doors  and  windows  are  fitted  with  stout  iron  bats,  both  as  a  means  of  defence  and  to 
secure  privacy . 

with  the  distress  and  suffering  which  exist  in  all  the  districts  ;  but 
General  Lee  reports  fully  upon  the  decrees  of  the  government  in  ref- 
erence to  autonomy  and  other  political  phases  of  the  situation. 
General  Lee's  correspondence  runs  from  November  17,  1897,  to  April 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION.  57 

i,  1898.  He  commences  with  statements  showing  the  futility  of  all 
efforts  to  help  the  reconcentrados,  and  then,  after  intimating  that  it 
would  be  well  for  several  warships  to  be  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Cuban  waters,  he  dwells  upon  the  anti-autonomy  position  of  Spanish 
officers,  the  great  misery  and  death  in  rural  towns,  the  refined  cruelty 
toward  the  starving  Cubans  ;  and  Consul  Barker  and  the  other  consuls 
draw  revolting  pictures  of  human  destitution  and  death. 

To  those  who  desired  the  country  to  rush  blindly  into  war,  the 
President's  message  was  a  sore  disappointment.  Belligerent  resolu- 
tions offered  both  in  the  Senate  and  the  House,  which  played  effec- 
tively to  the  galleries  and  doubtless  impressed  deeply  many  constituents 
at  home,  went  to  appropriate  committees  never  to  be  heard  of  again ; 
and  certain  newspapers  in  the  land  worked  themselves  into  a  rage 
against  the  calm  gentleman  in  the  White  House.  Amidst  these 
stirring  events  the  Administration  was  hoping  for  the  best  and 
prepared  for  the  worst. 

In  the  Senate  the  following  resolutions  were  passed  after  a 
heated  discussion  : 

"Whereas,  The  abhorrent  conditions  which  have  existed  for 
more  than  three  years  in  the  island  of  Cuba,  so  near  our  own  borders, 
have  shocked  the  moral  sense  of  the  people  of  the  United  States, 
have  been  a  disgrace  to  Christian  civilization,  culminating,  as  they 
have,  in  the  destruction  of  a  United  States  battleship,  with  266  of 
its  officers  and  crew,  while  on  a  friendly  visit  in  the  harbor  of 
Havana,  and  cannot  longer  be  endured,  as  has  been  set  forth  by  the 
President  of  the  United  States  in  his  message  to  Congress  of  April 
n,  1898,  upon  which  the  action  of  Congress  was  invited,  therefore, 

"Resolved  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America,  in  Congress  assembled  : 

»  First — That  the  people  of  the  island  of  Cuba  are,  and  of  right 
ought  to  be,  free  and  independent,  and  that  the  government  of  the 
United  States  hereby  recognizes  the  Republic  of  Cuba  as  the  true 
and  lawful  government  of  that  island. 

"  Second — That  it  is  the  duty  of  the  United  States  to  demand, 
and  the  government  of  the  United  States  does  hereby  demand,  that 
the  government  of  Spain  at  once  relinquish  its  authority  and  govern- 


58  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

ment  in  the  island  of  Cuba  and  withdraw  its  land  and  naval  forces 
from  Cuba  and  Cuban  waters. 

"Third— That  the  President  of  the  United  States  be,  and 
hereby  is,  directed  and  empowered  to  use  the  entire  land  and  naval 
forces  of  the  United  States,  and  to  call  into  the  actual  service  of  the 
United  States  the  militia  of  the  several  States,  to  such  extent  as  may 
be  necessary  to  carry  these  resolutions  into  effect. 

"  Fourth — That  the  United  States  hereby  disclaims  any  disposi- 
tion or  intention  to  exercise  sovereignty,  jurisdiction  or  control  over 
said  island,  except  for  the  pacification  thereof,  and  asserts  its  deter- 
mination when  that  is  accomplished  to  leave  the  government  and  the 
control  of  the  island  to  the  people." 

The  differences  between  the  House  and  Senate  bills  threatened 
to  cause  a  deadlock  ;  but  finally  a  joint  resolution  was  passed,  which 
was  substantially  the  Senate  bill  with  the  recognition  clause  omitted. 
This  was  signed  promptly  by  the  President,  and  on  April  20,  1898, 
this  government  sent  an  ultimatum  to  Minister  Woodford  at  Madrid 
to  be  presented  to  the  Spanish  government,  at  the  same  time  taking 
the  precaution  to  present  the  same  communication  to  the  Spanish 
Minister  at  Washington.  We  give  the  text  of  the  ultimatum  and 
Minister  Woodford's  dispatch  telling  of  his  summary  dismissal  from 
Spain  : 

"  April  20,  1898. 
"  WOODFORD,  Minister,  Madrid  : 

"  You  have  been  furnished  with  the  text  of  a  joint  resolution 
voted  by  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  on  the  nineteenth  instant, 
approved  to-day,  in  relation  to  the  pacification  of  the  island  of  Cuba. 
In  obedience  to  that  act,  the  President  directs  you  to  immediately 
communicate  to  the  government  of  Spain  said  resolution,  with  the 
formal  demand  of  the  government  of  the  United  States  that  the 
government  of  Spain  at  once  relinquish  its  authority  and  government 
in  the  island  of  Cuba  and  withdraw  its  land  and  naval  forces  from 
Cuba  and  Cuban  waters.  In  taking  this  step  the  United  States 
hereby  disclaims  any  disposition  or  intention  to  exercise  sovereignty, 
jurisdiction  or  control  over  said  island,  except  for  the  pacification 
thereof,  and  asserts  its  determination  when  that  is  accomplished  to 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION.  59 

leave  the  government  and  control  of  the  island  to  its  people,  under 
such  free  and  independent  government  as  they  may  establish. 

"  If  by  the  hour  of  noon  on  Saturday  next,  the  twenty-third  day 
of  April,  instant,  there  be  not  communicated  to  this  government  by 
that  of  Spain  a  full  and  satisfactory  response  to  this  demand  and 
resolution,  whereby  the  ends  of  peace  in  Cuba  shall  be  assured,  the 
President  will  proceed  without  further  notice  to  use  the  power  and 
authority  enjoined  and  conferred  upon  him  by  the  said  joint  resolu- 
tion to  such  extent  as  may  be  necessary  to  carry  the  same  into  effect. 

"  SHERMAN." 

Spain's  Reply,    Minister  Woodford's  Dismissal. 

The  Department  of  State  sent  a  copy  of  this  dispatch  to  Minister 
Polo  Wednesday  morning.  He  replied  by  asking  for  his  passports. 
The  following  message,  received  in  Washington,  announced  the  final 
severance  of  diplomatic  relations  with  Spain  : 

"  SHERMAN,  Washington : 

"  Early  this  ( Thursday )  morning,  immediately  after  the  receipt 
of  your  open  telegram  and  before  I  had  communicated  same  to 
Spanish  government,  Spanish  Minister  for  Foreign  Affairs  notified 
me  that  diplomatic  relations  are  broken  between  the  two  countries, 
and  that  all  official  communication  between  their  respective  repre- 
sentatives has  ceased.  I  accordingly  asked  for  safe  passports.  Turn 
Legation  over  to  British  Embassy  and  leave  for  Paris  this  afternoon. 
Have  notified  Consuls. 

"  WOODFORD." 

But  for  the  precaution  of  handing  to  Minister  Polo  de  Barnabe 
as  the  official  representative  of  Spain  at  Washington,  a  copy  of  the 
ultimatum,  there  would  have  been  no  way  of  notifying  Spain  officially 
of  the  action  of  this  government  as  our  Minister  was  dismissed  before 
this  could  be  done  at  Madrid.  As  this  last  act  of  Spain  was  virtually 
a  declaration  of  war,  the  President  issued  his  proclamation  declaring 
a  blockade  of  the  ports  of  the  Northern  Coast  of  Cuba,  between  Car- 
denas and  Bahia  Honda,  and  the  port  of  Cienfuegos  on  the  South 
Coast ;  Congress  passed  an  act  empowering  the  President  to  call  for 


60  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

volunteers  to  serve  for  two  years,  if  necessary,  which  act  was  followed 
by  a  proclamation  summoning  125,000  men  into  military  service  of 
the  government  to  be  apportioned,  as  far  as  practicable,  among  the 
several  states  and  territories  and  the  District  of  Columbia,  according 
to  population.  In  view  of  the  measures  already  taken,  and  with  a 
view  of  the  adoption  of  such  other  measures  as  may  be  necessarv  to 
enable  him  to  carry  out  the  expressed  will  of  Congress,  on  April  25, 
1898,  the  President  sent  this  special  message  to  Congress  recom- 

mending the  adoption  of  a 
joint  resolution  declaring 
that  a  state  of  war  exists  be- 
tween the  United  States  and 
the  Kingdom  of  Spain. 

"  The  Senate  and  House 
of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  —  I 
transmit  to  the  Congress  for 
its  consideration  and  ap- 
proval copies  of  correspon- 
dence recently  had  with  the 
representatives  of  Spain  in 
the  United  States  with  the 
United  States  Minister  at 
Madrid  and  through  the 
latter  with  the  government 


A   CUBAN       OTHER. 

taken  under  joint  resolution 

approved  Apiil  20,  1898,  '  for  the  recognition  of  the  independence  of 
the  people  of  Cuba  demanding  that  the  government  of  Spain  relin- 
quish its  authority  and  government  in  the  island  of  Cuba  and  to  with- 
draw its  land  and  naval  forces  from  Cuba  and  Cuban  waters  and 
directing  the  President  of  the  United  States  to  use  the  land  and 
naval  forces  of  the  United  States  to  carry  these  resolutions  into 
effect.' 

"Upon  communicating  to  the  Spanish  Minister  in  Washington 
the  demand  which  it  became  the  duty  of  the  executive  to  address  to 
the  government  of  Spain  in  obedience  to  said  resolution,  the  Minister 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   CHAMPION. 


61 


asked  for  his  passports  and  withdrew.  The  United  States  Minister 
at  Madrid  was  in  turn  notified  by  the  Spanish  Minister  for  Foreign 
Affairs  that  the  withdrawal  of  Spanish  representative  from  United 
States  had  terminated  diplomatic  relations  between  the  two  countries 
and  that  all  official  communications  between  their  respective  repre- 
sentatives ceased  therewith. 

"  I  recommend  to  your  especial  attention  the  note  addressed  to 
the  United  States  Minister  at  Madrid  by  the  Spanish  Minister  for 
Foreign  Affairs  on  the  twen- 
ty-first instant,  whereby  the 
foregoing  notification  was 
conveyed.  It  will  be  per- 
ceived therefrom  that  the 
government  of  Spain,  having 
cognizance  of  the  joint  reso- 
lution of  the  United  States 
Congress,  and  in  view  of  the 
things  which  the  President 
is  thereby  required  and  au- 
thorized to  do,  responds  by 
treating  the  demands  of  this 
government  as  measures .  of 
hostility,  following  at  that 
instance  immediate  and  com- 
plete severance  of  relations 
by  its  nation,  which,  by  the 
usages  of  nations,  accompa- 
nies an  existent  state  of  war  between  sovereign  powers.  The  po- 
sition of  Spain  being  thus  made  known  and  the  demands  of  the 
United  States  being  denied  with  a  complete  rupture  of  intercourse 
by  the  act  of  Spain,  I  am  constrained  in  exercise  of  the  power  and 
authority  conferred  upon  me  by  the  joint  resolution  aforesaid  to 
proclaim  under  date  of  April  22,  1898,  a  blockade  of  certain  ports 
of  the  north  coast  of  Cuba  lying  between  Cardenas  and  Bahia  Honda 
and  of  the  port  of  Cienfuegos  on  the  south  coast  of  Cuba ;  and, 
further,  in  exercise  of  my  constitutional  powers  and  using  the 
authority  conferred  upon  me  by  the  act  of  Congress  approved  April 


SENOR   SAGASTA, 

Premier  of  bpain. 


KECRUV 

S  \  \\ \O 

OlQG 

HI  (,\M 


ENLISTING   RECRUITS   FOR   THE   WAR. 

(62)  ,-/  Scene  in  City  PI  all  Park,  New  York. 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR  CUBA.  63 

22,  1898,  to  issue  my  proclamation  dated  April  23,  1898,  calling  for 
volunteers  in  order  to  carry  into  effect  the  said  resolution  of  April 

20,   1898. 

"  Copies  of  these  proclamations  are  hereunto  appended. 

"  In  view  of  the  measures  so  taken  and  with  view  to  the  adop- 
tion of  such  other  measures  as  may  be  necessary  to  enable  me  to 
carry  out  the  expressed  will  of  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  in 
the  premises,  I  will  recommend  to  your  honorable  consideration  the 
adoption  of  a  joint  resolution  declaring  that  a  state  of  war  exists 
between  the  United  States  of  America  and  the  Kingdom  of  Spain, 
and  I  urge  speedy  action  thereon  to  the  end  that  the  definition  of  the 
national  status  of  the  United  States  as  a  belligerent  power  may  be 
known,  and  the  assertion  of  all  its  rights  and  the  maintenance  of  all 
its  duties  in  the  conduct  of  a  public  war  may  be  assured. 

[Signed]         "WILLIAM  McKINLEY." 
"  EXECUTIVE  MANSION,  WASHINGTON,  April  25,  1898." 

Upon  the  receipt  of  this  message,  without  delay  both  houses  of 
Congress  passed  this  declaration  of  war  on  the  Kingdom  of  Spain : 

rt  First — That  war  be  and  the  same  is  hereby  declared  to  exist 
and  that  war  has  existed  since  twenty-first  day  of  April,  A.  D.  1898, 
including  same  day,  between  the  United  States  of  America  and  the 
Kingdom  of  Spain. 

"  Second — That  the  President  of  the  United  States  be,  and  he 
hereby  is  directed  and  empowered  to  use  the  entire  land  and  naval 
forces  of  the  United  States  and  to  call  into  the  actual  service  of  the 
United  States  the  militia  of  the  several  States,  to  such  extent  as  may 
be  necessary  to  carry  this  act  into  effect." 

Since  the  early  years  of  the  century  America  has  shown  a  com- 
passionate regard  for  the  beautiful  but  blood-stained  island  of  Cuba ; 
and  now  she  has  become  her  champion.  Trusting  in  the  God  of 
battles,  let  us  go  forth  in  this  holy  crusade  from  every  part  of  this 
liberty-loving  land,  regardless  of  creed  or  color  or  party,  singing  the 
song  of  freedom  : 

"  In  the  beauty  of  the  lilies 

Christ  was  born  across  the  sea; 
As  He  died  to  make  men  holy, 
Let  us  die  to  make  men  free  !" 


CHAPTER  III. 


The  Battle  for  Humanity. 


(65) 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  BATTLE  FOR  HUMANITY. 

Incapacity  of  European  journals  to  appreciate  disinterested  interference— The 
United  States  patient  and  forbearing— Offers  of  purchase— Spanish  resentment — 
A  European  indictment  of  the  oppressor— A  long  series  of  outrages— European 
powers  deprecate  war — Not  a  war  for  territory — The  nuisance  of  proximity 
to  mediaeval  barbarity — A  vision  of  Anglo-Saxon  comradeship — A  poet's  acclaim. 

|T  is  with  difficulty  that  the  present  position  of  America  is 
made  clear  to  the  conscience  of  Europe;  and  consequently 
European  journals  with  the  single  exception  of  the  Eng- 
lish press  are  savage  in  their  attacks  upon  us,  based  upon 
a  total  misunderstanding  of  our  attitude  and  a  complete  misinterpre- 
tation of  our  acts.  For  many  years  this  country  has  silently  and 
patiently  waited  for  Spanish  barbarities  to  cease  in  the  fair  island 
of  Cuba.  Moved  by  unselfish  sympathy  America  has  ever  stood 
ready  to  lend  a  helping  hand  in  any  generous  move  to  restore  order 
among  the  Cubans  and  bring  to  them  liberty  and  happiness  in  the 
place  of  despotism  and  inhumanity. 

In  1848  President  Polk  went  so  far  as  to  propose  a  transference 
of  the  island  to  the  United  States  for  the  sum  of  $1,000,000.  Ten 
years  later  a  proposition  was  made  in  the  senate  of  the  United  States 
to  buy  the  island  for  $30,000,000.  With  characteristic  magnanimity 
and  conservatism  our  government  has  done  everything  that  it  could 
do  within  the  limits  of  international  law,  to  show  that  it  was  not  an 
uninterested  spectator  of  the  events  that  were  transpiring  among  a 
people  living  less  than  one  hundred  miles  from  our  shores;  but 
without  exception,  the  government  at  Madrid  has  repelled  all  of  our 
good  offices  as  unwarranted  interference;  and  in  more  than  one 
instance  she  has  been  positively  insulting.  It  seemed  that  America's 
sympathy  for  the  Cubans  merely  served  to  increase  the  cruelties  of 
Spain  against  these  unfortunate  people ;  and  now,  when  patience  has 

(67) 


68 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


ceased  to  be  a  virtue,  sympathy  must  develop  into  something  more 
substantial.  In  discussing  the  terrible  ten  years'  war  (1868-78)  the 
Edinburgh  Review  uses  these  words  :  "  It  is  well  known  that  Spain 
governs  the  island  of  Cuba  with  an  iron  and  blood-stained  hand.  The 
former  holds  the  latter  deprived  of  political,  civil  and  religious  liberty. 
Hence  the  unfortunate  Cubans,  being  illegally  prosecuted  and  sent 
into  exile,  or  executed  by  military  commissions  in  time  of  peace  ; 
hence  their  being  kept  from  public  meeting  and  forbidden  to  speak 


THE   LANDING   PLACE,    SANTIAGO   BE   CUBA. 

or  write  on  affairs  of  state  ;  hence  their  remonstrances  against  the 
evils  that  afflict  them  being  looked  upon  as  the  proceedings  of  rebels, 
from  the  fact  that  they  are  bound  to  keep  silence  and  obey  ;  hence 
the  never-ending  plague  of  hungry  officials  from  Spain  to  devour  the 
product  of  their  industry  and  labor;  hence  their  exclusion  from 
public  stations,  and  want  of  opportunity  to  fit  themselves  for  the  art 
of  government ;  hence  the  restrictions  to  which  public  instruction 
with  them  is  subjected  in  order  to  keep  them  so  ignorant  as  not  to 
be  able  to  know  and  enforce  their  rights  in  any  shape  or  form  what- 
ever;  hence  the  navy  and  the  standing  army,  which  are  kept  in  their 


THE   BATTLE   FOR   HUMANITY. 


69 


THE   LATE   SPANISH     PREMIER    CANOVAS. 


country  at  an   enormous  expen- 
diture from  their  own  wealth,  to 

make  them  bend  their  knees  and 

submit    their   necks  to  the   iron 

yoke  that  disgraces  them  ;  hence 

the  grinding  taxation  under  which 

they  labor  and  which  would  make 

them  all  perish  in  misery  but  for 

the   marvelous  fertility  of  their 

soil."    At  this  time  if  the  United 

States   government  had  sent   an 

ultimatum  to  Madrid,  the  world 

would    not   have   witnessed   the 

horrors  of  the   last  three  years  ; 

but,  according  to  precedent,  she 

was  slow  to   interfere  in  the  gov- 
ernment   of    another     sovereign 

power. 

The  government  of  the 

United  States  determined  wisely  that  war  should  be  the  last  resort. 

During  the  last   three  years  while  the  Spaniards  were  engaged  in 

deeds    of    un- 

U  civilized   war- 

fare, along  our 
shores,  that 
wereumnatch- 
ed  by  the  at- 
rocities of  the 
Turks  against 
the  A  r  m  e- 
nians,  we  gave 
to  the  world 
an  illustration 
of  calmness,  re- 
served power 
and  suppress- 
ed indignation. 

'  TENTING  OUT"   IN   CUBA. 


.70 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


that  must  ever  defend  us  from  the  charge  of  precipitate  action.  The 
bread-winners  were  not  allowed  to  pursue  their  honest  labor ;  inno- 
cent women  and  children  were  driven  from  their  flaming  homes  to 
suffer  nameless  agony  and  to  die  of  disease  and  starvation  ;  the 
plow  rusted  in  the  furrow  ;  fertile  fields  were  blackened  by  the 
tongue  of  the  torch  ;  factories  were  silent ;  and  despair,  darkness 
and  death  reigned  throughout  a  land  that  might  be  an  Eden  of 
beauty  were  it  not  for  the  madness  of  man.  In  the  words  of  another  : 
"This  government,  on  the  suggestion  of  the  President,  took 
$50,000  out  the  treasury  of  the  United  States  and  begged  permission 


SUGAR    CANE   LOADKD    FOR    MARKET. 


of  Spain  for  the  privilege  of  feeding  the  starving  on  her  unhappy 
island.  Popular  subscriptions  have  forwarded  food,  clothing  and 
medicine  to  the  starving,  the  sick  and  the  dying.  Every  effort  at 
pacification,  mediation,  arbitration,  however,  made  by  the  President 
has  been  construed  by  Spain  to  rje  an  act  of  cowardly  compromise  ; 
every  effort  at  cautious  and  careful  consideration  to  avoid  war  on  our 
part  has  made  Spain  more  cruel  to  her  own  people  and  more  insulting 
to  us.  Our  battleship  '  Maine,'  when  in  the  harbor  of  Havana,  by 
right  of  custom  of  tendered  hospitality,  also  by  treaty  contract,  and 
while  acting  as  a  messenger  of  peace,  was  suddenly  exploded  by 
treachery  and^sunk  as  a  coffin  containing  the  bodies  of  266  of  our 


THE  BATTLE  FOR  HUMANITY. 


innocent  sailors.  This  happened  in  the  night  time,  a  dark  and 
gloomy  night — natural  and  proper  time  for  diabolic  deeds.  Our  men 
were  asleep  on  the  bosom  of  friendly  waters  ;  they  were  taken  at  a 
cruel  disadvantage  ;  no  warning  was  given  them  ;  no  challenge  to 
arise  and  show  their  courage.  They  were  not  whipped  in  honorable 
battle.  Nay  ;  they  were  choked,  burned,  strangled  and  drowned 
without  a  chance  to  die  fighting  for  life,  without  a  moment  to  say  a 
prayer.  In  a  sec- 
ond of  time  they 
were  ushered  be- 
fore the  bar  of 
the  Almighty  to 
face  the  issues  of 
eternity.  The  / 

world  stood 
aghast  with  hor- 
r  o  r  ;  the  con- 
science of  Chris- 
tendom cursed 
the  foul  and  das- 
tardly crime.  The 
President  knew  it 
all,  but  waited. 
Like  a  judge  on 
the  bench  he 
waited  for  a  thor- 
ough and  impar- 
tial investigation  of  all  the  facts,  hoping  against  hope  that  accident 
and  not  treachery  would  account  for  the  colossal  '  Maine '  disaster. 
Diplomacy  exhausted  its  resources  ;  delay  was  allowed  Spain  to  have 
recourse  to  the  '  sober  second  thought ; '  a  seasonable  demand  was 
made  that  she  simply  evacuate  an  island  which  she  had  lost  power 
to  pacify  ;  all  to  no  purpose.  Drunk  with  debauchery,  mad  with 
crime,  environed  with  hate  and  led  along  by  folly,  the  effete  mon- 
archy of  Spain  flung  her  gauntlet  in  the  face  of  the  mightiest 
republic  the  world  has  ever  seen  and  dared  us  to  arrest  her  impu- 
dence, lawlessness,  barbarism  and  inhumanity.  War  was  inevitable 
and  so  war  is  here.  So  be  it." 


COURT-YARD   OF  GOVERNOR-GENERAL'S   PALACE,    HAVANA. 


72  COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 

The  joint  note  of  the  six  powers  gave  evidence  that  America's 
attitude  in  this  Cuban  matter  was  misunderstood,  and  her  determined 
action  was  misinterpreted.  Six  ambassadors  and  ministers  repre- 
senting the  great  powers  which  form  the  so-called  concert  of  Europe 
appeared  in  a  body  and  expressed  the  hope  on  the  part  of  their 
governments  that  peace  might  be  maintained.  The  President's 
reception  of  these  gentlemen  has  been  criticised,  but  no  loyal 


IN  THE  COURT- YARD  OPPOSITE  "LOS  FOSSOS,"  HAVANA. 

Los  Fossos  ("the  Ditch  ")  is  the  public  resting-place  of  the  poor  and  destitute.  It  has 
sheltered  many  thousands  of  the  reconcentrados,  and  has  been  a  nest  of  filth, 
•misery  and  disease. 

American  can  find  fault  with  his  short  but  pointed  reply  to  the  joint 
note. 

The  note  was  as  follows : 

"  The  undersigned  representatives  of  Germany,  Austria-Hungary, 
France,  Great  Britain,  Italy  and  Russia,  duly  authorized  in  that 
behalf,  address  in  the  name  of  their  respective  governments  a  pressing 


THE  BATTLE  FOR  HUMANITY. 


73 


appeal  to  the  feelings  of  humanity  and  moderation  of  the  President 
and  of  the  American  people  in  their  existing  differences  with  Spain. 
They  earnestly  hope  that  further  negotiations  will  lead  to  an  agree- 
ment which,  while  securing  the  maintenance  of  peace,  will  afford  all 


A   CUBAN    BEDROOM. 


necessary  guarantees  for  the  re-establishment  of  order  in  Cuba. 
The  powers  do  not  doubt  that  the  humanitarian  and  disinterested 
character  of  this  representation,  will  be  fully  recognized  and  appre- 
ciated by  the  American  nation." 

The  President's  reply  had  been  carefully  prepared  in  advance, 


74 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


MARINA    STREET,    SANTIAGO   DE   CUBA. 


and  was  im- 
mediately 
submitted, 
its  purport 
being  suffi- 
ciently indi- 
cajted  by  the 
f  o  1  lowi  n g 
sentence  : 

"  The  gov- 
ernment of 
the  United 
States  appre- 
ciates  the 
h  u  m  a  n  i  t  a  - 
rian  and  dis- 
interested character  of  the  communication  now  made  on  behalf  of 
the  powers  named,  and,  for  its  part,  is  confident  that  equal  appre- 
ciation will  be  shown  for  its  own  earnest  and  unselfish  endeavors 
to  fulfill  a  duty  to  humanity  by  ending  a  situation  the  indefinite 
prolongation  of  which  has  become  insufferable." 

This  is  not  a  war  for  conquest.  This  is  a  fact  hard  for  Spain  to 
admit ;  for  all  of  her  wars,  during  the  ages,  have  been  waged  either 
to  defend  her  own  pos- 
sessions or  to  secure  the  '••  j 
possessions  of  others.  For 
years  rich  islands  in  the 
Pacific  have  been  repeat- 
edly offered  to  the  United 
States ;  but,  as  yet,  this 
"Paradise  of  the  Pacific  " 
has  not  been  accepted. 
If  this  government  had 
been  inspired  by  the  love 
of  conquest,  her  standing 
army  and  navy  would  be 
much  larger  than  they  WHERE  BABES  WERE  SKELETONS. 


THE  BATTLE  FOR  HUMANITY. 


75 


are,  and  earlier  in  the  century  the  stars  and  stripes  would  have  been 
flying,  not  only  over  the  West  Indies,  but  over  more  desirable 
possessions. 

And  surely  this  is  not  a  war  for  military  glory.  We  count  it  no 
special  honor  to  silence  the  guns  of  a  nation  that  has  a  genius  for 
murdering  women  and  children,  and  whose  territory  and  population 
cannot  be  compared  to  ours.  And  we  are  waging  not  a  war  of 
revenge  or  retaliation  ;  for  Spain  was  given  the  opportunity  of  leaving 
this  hemisphere  after  the  "  Maine "  was  destroyed,  and  before  the 
declaration  of  war  was  made  at  Washington.  We  have  entered  upon 


VILLAGE   OF    SEIBA    DEL    MOCHA,    NEAR    MATANZAS    CITY. 

This  Little  Village  was  almost  rviped  out  by  the  Famine. 

a  war  which  will  entail  the  expenditure  of  millions  of  money  and 
which  may  cost  the  sacrifice  of  many  lives,  prompted  by  the  highest 
motives  that  can  burn  in  the  human  breast.  Our  enemy,  who  is  the 
enemy  of  every  instinct  of  nobility  and  humanity,  has  been  tried, 
convicted  and  condemned  by  the  code  of  Christendom  ;  and  by  the 
help  of  a  righteous  God  we  expect  to  execute  the  just  sentence. 

This  part  of  the  world  has  no  place  for  mediaeval  barbarity  ;  and 
having  awakened  to  this  conclusion,  our  army  and  navy  will  not  rest 
iintil  the  shadow  and  shame  of  Spain  are  lifted  from  American 
waters.  The  right  of  way  of  civilization  condemns  her  presence  on 


76 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR    FOR   CUBA. 


the  track  over  which  it  must  move  in  its  onward  march  ;  and  the 
country  that  represents  the  highest  type  of  civilization  on  earth  is 
called  upon  to  see  that  she  is  moved  forcibly,  as  she  will  not  leave 
peaceably.  America  owes  a  debt  to  the  world  ;  and  it  is  time  she  was 
paying  it.  Her  position  among  the  nations  is  unique.  Here  on  her 
shores  were  planted  the  seeds  of  a  pure  gospel — the  gospel  of  light, 
love  and  liberty ;  here  was  first  broken  the  chain  that  bound  together 

Church  and  State  ;  here  was 
opened  an  asylum  for  the 
oppressed  of  earth  ;  here  in 
clearer  and  more '  consistent 
notes  than  anywhere  under 
the  blue  vault  of  the  skies 
is  preached  the  divine  doc- 
trine of  the  fatherhood  cf 
God  and  the  brotherhood  of 
man  ;  and  from  hence  must 
go  forth  influences  which 
shall  be  for  the  abolition  of 
every  form  of  tyranny  and 
the  uplifting  of  the  emblems 
of  peace  and  purity,  truth 
and  righteousness. 

It  is  to  be  hoped  that 
this  war  will  bring  about  a  clearer  understanding  and  a  more  inti- 
mate union  between  Great  Britain  on  the  other  side  and  Greater 
Britain  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic.  Why  should  not  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  race  unite  forces?  Not  for  war,  but  for  peace  ;  not  to  enslave, 
but  to  give  freedom  ;  not  to  humiliate,  but  to  exalt ;  not  to  destroy,, 
but  to  upbuild  ;  not  to  create  enmity,  but  to  proclaim  and  illustrate 
among  the  nations  the  Gospel  of  Peace  on  Earth  and  Goodwill 
toward  men. 


GENERAI,   MARTINEZ   CAMPOS, 

Former  Captain-General  of  Cuba. 


THE  BATTLE  FOR  HUMANITY. 


77 


ANGLO-AMERICAN   UNITY. 

BY  ALFRED  AUSTIN,  POET-LAUREATE. 


What  is  the  voice  I  hear 

On  the  winds  of  the  Western  Sea  ? 
Sentinel,  listen  from  out  Cape  Clear, 

And  say  what  the  voice  may  be, 
'Tis  a  proud,  free  people  calling  loud  to  a  people  proud  and  free. 


A  PUBLIC  SQUARE  IN  THE  SPANISH  CAPITAL. 

"And  it  says  to  them,  '  Kinsmen,  hail ! 

We  severed  have  been  too  long ; 
Now  let  us  have  done  with  a  worn-out  tale, 

The  tale  of  an  ancient  wrong, 
And  our  friendship  last  long  as  love  doth  last,  and  be  stronger  than 

death  is  strong.'  " 


78  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR.  CUBA. 

Answer  them,  sons  of  the  self-same  race, 

And  blood  of  the  self-same  clan, 
Let  us  speak  with  each  other,  face  to  face, 

And  answer  as  man  to  man, 
And  loyally  love  and  trust  each  other  as  none  but  free  men  can. 

Now  fling  them  out  to  the  breeze, 
Shamrock,  thistle  and  rose, 

And  the  Star-Spangled  Banner  unfurl  with  these, 
A  message  to  friends  and  foes, 

Wherever  the  sails  of  peace  are  seen  and  wherever  the  war  wind 
blows. 

A  message  to  bond  and  thrall  to  wake, 

For  wherever  we  come,  we  twain, 
The  throne  of  the  tyrant  shall  rock  and  quake 

And  his  menace  be  void  and  vain, 
For  you  are  lords  of  a  strong  young  land,  and  we  are  lords  of  the  main. 

Yes,  this  is  the  voice  on  the  bluff  March  gale, 

"  We  severed  have  been  too  long  ; 
But  now  we  have  done  with  a  worn-out  tale, 

The  tale  of  an  ancient  wrong, 

And  our  friendship  last  long  as  love  doth  last,  and  be  stronger  than 
death  is  strong." 


CHAPTER  IV. 


Weyler,  Blanco,  and  the  Reconcentrados, 
The  " Maine"  Disaster. 


(79) 


CHAPTER  IV. 

WEYLER,  BLANCO  AND  THE  RECONCENTRADOS— AUTONOMY  AND   THE  "  MAINE  " 

DISASTER. 

Attempts  to  crush  the  insurrection  by  brutality— Butcher  Weyler— Personal  esti- 
mate of  the  man — His  menacing  manifests — The  infamous  concentration 
order — Sugar  planters  provoked — A  fence  of  steel  across  the  island — A 
Policy  of  extermination — Driving  in  the  peasants — Direct  responsibility  for 
sixty  thousand  deaths — What  autonomy  meant — DeL,ome's  insult  to  the 
President — His  recall — Destruction  of  the  "  Maine  " — Verdict  of  the  Board  ol 
Inquiry. 

N  1895,  when  General  Martinez  Campos  was  recalled  by 
the  Spanish  government  and  General  Valeriano  Weyler 
was  appointed  as  Captain-General  of  Cuba,  the  mother 
country  congratulated  herself  that  the  insurgent  uprising 
would  soon  be  crushed.  The  arrival  of  General  Weyler  was  cele- 
brated by  a  brilliant  display  at  Havana.  When  he  stepped  from 
his  ship  the  general  was  dressed  in  full  uniform,  his  breast  was 
bedecked  with  all  of  his  flashing  decorations,  and  while  the  cannon 
was  booming,  the  flags  were  flying,  and  the  bands  were  playing 
martial  airs,  he  was  escorted  between  files  of  soldiers  to  the  palace. 
One  who  held  a  personal  conference  with  this  man  of  unenviable 
reputation  thus  describes  him  : 

"  Weyler  is  lean,  diminutive,  shriveled,  ambitious  for  immortality 
irrespective  of  its  odor,  a  master  of  diplomacy,  the  slave  of  Spain  for 
the  glory  of  sitting  at  the  right  of  her  throne,  unlovable,  unloving, 
exalted.  His  eyes  far  apart,  bright,  alert  and  striking,  took  me  in  at 
a  glance.  His  face  seemed  to  run  to  chin,  his  lower  jaw  protruding 
far  beyond  any  ordinary  indication  of  firmness,  persistence  or  will 
power.  His  forehead  is  neither  high  nor  receding,  neither  is  it  that 
of  a  thoughtful  or  philosophic  man.  His  ears  are  set  far  back,  and 
what  is  called  the  region  of  intellect  in  which  are  those  mental  attri- 
butes that  might  be  defined  as  powers  of  observation,  calculationr 
judgment  and  execution,  is  strongly  developed." 
6  (81) 


82 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


Soon  after  reaching  Cuba,  Weyler  struck  the  keynote  of  his 
administration  by  issuing  an  order  in  which  occurred  the  following 
significant  sentences  :  "  I  take  charge  of  my  duties  with  the  expec- 
tation ever  constant  in  me  of  preserving  its  possession  for  Spain, 
determined  as  she  is  in  this  purpose  to  spare  no  kind  of  strenuous 
exertions,  of  which  she  is  giving  evident  proof.  I  shall  not  be  found 
wanting  in  determination  and  energy,  which  are  my  characteristics, 


Copyrighted  1896,  by  J.  S.  Johnston. 
THE   U.    S.    BATTLESHIP   "MAINE,"   AS    SHE   APPEARED    ON    HER    VISIT  TO   HAVANA. 

to  punish  with  all  the  severity  sanctioned  by  law  those  who  may- 
help  the  enemy  in  any  way,  or  try  to  abate  the  dignity  of  our  national 
name."  As  the  campaign  continued,  the  published  orders  sent  out 
from  the  Spanish  headquarters  in  Havana  grew  in  severity.  "  All 
prisoners,"  it  was  decreed,  "  taken  by  the  troops  during  an  engage- 
ment with  the  enemy  will  be  submitted  to  summary  proceedings,  for 
which  all  judicial  formalities  shall  be  avoided  that  are  not  absolutely 
indispensable  to  pass  judgment." 


WEYLER,  BLANCO,  AND  THE  RECONCENTRADOS.     83 


On  February  25,  1896,  when  the  Spanish  cause  seemed  to  be  in 
dire  straits,  Weyler  commissioned  a  committee  of  military  officers  to 
execute  a  requisition  for  ten  per  cent  of  the  number  of  horses  used 
for  running  cabs,  stages  and  tram 
cars.  All  of  the  state  papers  of 
the  general,  at  this  time,  show 
great  energy  of  expression  and 
earnestness  of  purpose ;  but  placed 
side  by  side,  their  inconsistency 
is  quite  apparent.  On  one  day 

_       .  DIVEKS  AT  WORK  ON   THE  WRECK  OF  THE 

he  sounds  a  paean  of  victory  over  ,,  MA1NE  „  IN  HAVANA  HARBOR 

the  enemy ;  the  next  day  comes 

a  call  for  more  courage  and  aggression  on  the  part  of  the  soldiers ; 
then  follows  a  savage  threat  against  those  who  are  secretly  giving 
the  enemy  information  ;  now  appears  a  rally  cry,  invoking  all  in  the 
name  of  the  fatherland,  to  crush  out  the  rebellion  that  seems  to  be 
assuming  larger  proportions  than  was  anticipated ;  and  apparently 

realizing  that  extreme 
measures  must  be 
taken  in  every  part 
of  the  island  accessi- 
ble to  his  soldiers,  the 
captain-general  sent 
out  this  extraordi- 
nary  decree:  "All 
rural  inhabitants  of 
the  Sancti  Spiritus 
district  and  of  the 
province  of  Puerto 
Principe  and  Santi- 
ago de  Cuba,  will 
make  their  concentra- 
tion at  the  towns 
having  any  division, 

brigade,  column  or  other  troops  of  the  army,  and  then  get  docu- 
ments of  personal  guarantee,  within  eight  days  after  the  present 
decree  has  been  published  at  the  nearest  township."  Again: 


THE   MASCOT  OF  THE    "MAINE. 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


FIRST    OFFICER    WAINWR] 
THE    "MAINE." 


"  Storekeepers  established  out  in  the 
country  will  empty  their  shops,  and 
the  chiefs  of  columns  will  take 
such  steps  as  may  favor  the  suc- 
cess of  operations  in  regard  to  build- 
ings or  other  property,  which  while 
not  being  of  considerable  value,  may 
afford  shelter  to  the  rebels  in  the  in- 
terior of  the  woods  or  on  the  open 
country."  A  question  of  vital  in- 
terest now  arose  which  touched  the 
chief  industry  of  the  island.  Dur- 
ing the  latter  part  of  February  the 
sugar  makers  insisted  upon  Weyler 
informing  them  when  they  could 
grind  cane.  The  answer  to  this 
question  would  effect  not  only  the 
prosperity  of  the  island,  but  the 
commercial  life  of  Spain,  to  an  important  extent.  The  shipment  of 
one  million  tons  of  sugar,  the  impost  duties  on  which  amounted 
to  eighteen  million  dollars  a  year, 
was  not  an  insignificant  matter  to 
a  kingdom  overwhelmed  by  debt. 
When  Weyler  at  last  positively  prom- 
ised the  sugar  men  that  on  March 
fifteenth  they  could  grind  cane  un- 
molested by  the  enemy,  this  pro- 
duced much  satisfaction  ;  and  from 
the  palace  it  was  announced  that 
within  three  weeks  at  least  three  of 
the  provinces  now  disturbed  by  the 
insurgents  would  be  at  peace,  and 
the  wheels  of  industry  would  be 
turning  without  interruption.  But 
the  captain-general  was  over-confi- 
dent, and  the  planters  were  doomed 
to  disappointment.  By  the  middle  A  JUNIOR  OFFICER  or  THE 


CAPTAIN  SIGSBEE,   OE  THE   "MAINE,"   ON  BOARD  OF  THE  U.  S.  S.  "FERN." 

This  Photograph  was  taken  ivhen  the  "Fern  "  was  in  Key  West  Harbor. 

(85) 


86  COLUMBIA'S   WAR^  FOR   CUBA. 

of  March  the  enemy  was  stronger  than  ever ;  there  was  not  a  district 
in  all  the  island  where  "  grinding "  was  regarded  safe  ;  and  the 
promises  and  plans  of  the  sanguine  successor  of  Campos  were,  unlike 
the  insurgents,  broken  and  crushed  ! 

As  the  inroad  of  the  enemy  must  be  stopped,  Weyler  conceived 


THK   SPANISH   WARSHIP    "ALFONSO   XII." 


WRECK   OF  THE 
"  MAINE." 

the  brilliant  idea  of 
forming  a  fence  of 
steel  composed  of 
Spanish  columns, 

across  the  island  ;  and  this  was  greeted  as  a  fine  stroke  of  military 

genius.     But  in  the  words  of  Hudibras  he — 

"  Found  in  few  minutes,  to  his  cost, 
He  did  but  count  without  his  host." 

The  columns  of  Spanish  soldiers  were  hardly  formed  from  one 
side  of  the  island  to  the  other,  when  the  enemy  broke  out  in  unex- 
pected places  ;  and  from  Havana  could  be  seen  the  light  of  burning 


WEYLER,  BLANCO,  AND  THE  RECONCENTRADOS.        87 


tobacco  and  sugar  plantations,  which  Spanish  soldiers  had  been  sent 
out  to  protect. 

Early  in  the  fall  of  1896  General  Weyler,  convinced  by  this  time 
that  he  could  not  easily  crush  the  rebellion  of  the  insurgents,  and 
doubtless  fearing  that  his  administration  would  prove  as  ineffective  as 
his  predecessor's,  determined  to  press  heroic  measures,  which  were  no 
less  than  a  process  of  extermination  by  starvation.  Having  the 
endorsement  of  the  government  at  Madrid,  he  published  the  bando 
or  proclamation  under  which  the  various  commanders  of  military 
districts  were  instructed  to  give  the  country  people  of  the  four 
western  provinces  of  ^^—™ 

Pinar  del  Rio,  Havana, 
Matanzas  and  Santa 
Clara,  a  period  of  eight 
days  in  which  to  leave 
their  homes  and  report 
at  certain  specified  sta- 
tions of  concentration. 
The  execution  of  this 
barbarous  p  r  o  c  1  a  m  a- 
tion  was  attended  by 
nameless  horrors  in 
many  instances,as  those 
who  carried  it  in  force 
were  the  guerillas  or 
irregular  troops.  The 

homes  of  these  wretch-  S^'  MfKTM^^^^^BM'.^^^^^BffiH 
ed  guajiros  were  burn- 
ed, their  horses  and 
cattle  were  confiscated  ; 
and  farms  were  devas- 
tated and  everything 
of  any  value  was  taken 
from  them.  A  month  after  the  publication  of  this  cruel  bando,  it 
was  estimated  that  400,000  of  these  peasants,  including  aged  and 
infirm  men  and  women,  mothers  and  children,  were  "concentrated" 
at  these  stations  ;  military  cordons  were  thrown  about  them  ;  and  the 


DON    RAMON   BLANCO, 

Captain-General  of  the  Island  of  Cuba. 


8 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


strictest  watch  was  kept  over  them.  Before  we  consider  further  the 
dreadful  consequences  following  this  order,  let  us  present  its  text 
in  full  : 

"  I,  Don  Valeriano  Weyler  y  Nicolau,  Marquis  of  Tenerife,. 
Governor-General,  Captain-General,  of  this  Island  and  Commander- 
in-Chief  of  the  Army,  etc.,  etc.,  hereby  order  and  command  : 

"  i.  That  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  country  districts,  or  those 
who  reside  outside  the  lines  of  fortifications  of  the  towns,  shall 

within  a  delay  of  eight  days  enter 
the  towns  which  are  occupied  by 
the  troops.  Any  individual  found 
outside  the  lines  in  the  country  at 
the  expiration  of  this  period  shall 
be  considered  a  rebel  and  shall  be 
dealt  with  as  such. 

"  2.  The  transport  of  food  from 
the  towns,  and  the  carrying  of  food 
from  one  place  to  another,  by  sea 
or  by  land,  without  the  permission 
of  the  military  authorities  of  the 
place  of  departure,  is  absolutely 
forbidden.  Those  who  infringe 
upon  this  order  will  be  tried  and 
punished  as  aiders  and  abettors  of 
the  rebellion. 

"  3.  The  owners  of  cattle  must 
drive  their  herds  to  the  towns,  or 
to  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  towns,  for  which  purposes  proper 
escort  will  be  given  them. 

"When  the  period  of  eight  days  which  shall  be  reckoned  in 
each  district  from  the  day  of  the  publication  of  this  proclamation  in 
the  .-  ountry  town  of  the  district,  shall  have  expired,  all  insurgents 
who  may  present  themselves  will  be  placed  under  my  orders  for  the 
purpose  of  designating  a  place  in  which  they  must  reside.  The 
furnishing  of  news  concerning  the  enemy,  which  can  be  availed  of 
with  advantage,  will  serve  as  a  recommendation  to  them  ;  also,  when 
the  presentation  is  made  with  fire-arms  in  their  possession,  and  when 


DON   VALERIANO   WEYLER, 

Formerly  Captain-General  of  Cuba  and 
the  author  of  the  notorious  Reconcen- 
tration  edict  which  resulted  in  the 
death  by  starvation  of  multitudes  of 
Cuban  peasants. 


WEYLER,  BLANCO  AND  THE  RECONCENTRADOS.      89 

— and  more  especially — when  the  insurgents  present  themselves  in 
numbers. 

"VALERIANO  WEYLER. 
"HABANA,  October  21,  1896." 

One  who  visited  six  of  these  stations  declares  that  in  these 
alone  there  were  sixty  thousand  homeless  and  starving  wretches,  and 
not  less  than  ten  thousand  died  from  disease  or  starvation  during  the 
first  two  months  after  the  concentration  order  was  put  into  execution. 
It  is  well  known  that  the  reason  for  driving  these  innocent  non- 
combatants  from  their  quiet  country  homes  and  herding  them  within 
the  lines  of  fortifications,  was  to  destroy,  if  possible,  all  the  insur- 


THE   CASTLE,    CIENFUEGOS,    CUBA. 

gents'  sources  of  supply  and  information  ;  but  during  the  eighteen 
months  since  the  dastardly  decree  was  put  into  effect,  the  enemy  has 
managed  to  exist,  but  the  poor  peasants,  driven  from  their  homes 
and  farms  and  allowed  to  take  nothing  with  them  except  what 
they  could  carry  on  their  backs,  have  perished  by  the  hundreds  of 
thousands. 

The  recall  of  General  Weyler  and  the  appointment  of  General 
Blanco  as  Captain-General  of  Cuba,  the  more  pacific  administration 
of  the  new  ruler  of  the  island,  the  declaration  from  Madrid  that  the 
Spanish  government  was  willing  to  grant  a  generous  scheme  of 
autonomy  to  the  Cubans,  all  combined  to  quiet  the  indignation  of 
America  against  Spain  for  a  while  ;  but  when  it  was  seen  that  she 
was  acting  with  her  characteristic  insincerity,  and  when  it  became 
apparent  that  what  the  autonomy  offered  would  not  be  accepted  by 
the  Cubans,  who  for  three  years  had  waged  a  valiant  warfare  for 


9o 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


liberty  from  the  Spanish  yoke  and  for  national  independence,  Ameri- 
can interest  in  Cuba  and  the  Cubans  became  more  acute  than  ever. 
Events  occurred  to  intensify  our  sympathy  for  the  unfortunate  island 
and  to  increase  our  distrust  of  Spain. 

Early  in  February  Dupuy  de  Lome,  the  Spanish  Minister  at 
Washington,  wrote  a  letter  to  Senor  Canalejos,  a  Spaniard  of  high 
rank  who  had  recently  been  in  the  United  States  and  subsequently 


A    NEAR-BY    VIEW   OF   THE   FROWNING   MORRO. 

in  Havana,  supposedly  making  observations  for  his  government,  in 
which  he  used  disparaging  and  insulting  language  against  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States,  and  clearly  intimated  in  the  letter  that  the 
autonomy  proposals  were  not  to  be  considered  seriously,  but  that  they 
were  a  mere  blind  for  the  purpose  of  gaining  more  time  for  military 
operations  by  diverting  public  opinion  in  the  United  States.  Finding 
that  his  falsehood  in  denying  the  authorship  of  the  letter  was 
exposed,  and  knowing  that  his  dismissal  or  recall  from  Washington 
was  a  foregone  conclusion,  he  telegraphed  his  resignation,  and  hurried 


92  COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 

out  of  the  country.  This  unfortunate  episode  did  not  tend  to  lessen 
the  bitter  feeling  against  Spain. 

In  January,  1898,  the  Atlantic  Squadron  sailed  to  the  waters  of 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  there  was  a  rendezvous  of  the  American 
fleet  at  the  Dry  Tortugas. 

On  January  25,  by  order  of  the  Navy  Department,  the  battle- 
ship "  Maine  "  left  the  fleet  and  proceeded  to  the  harbor  of  Havana. 
The  Spanish  government  expressed  its  entire  acquiescence  in  this 
act ;  and  immediately  it  announced  that,  as  a  return  courtesy,  the 
Spanish  cruiser  "  Vizcaya  "  would  come  to  the  New  York  harbor. 


BOAT  LANDING  AT    HAVANA    HARBOR. 


Just  about  the  time  the  "  Vizcaya  "  was  due  to  arrive  at  Sandy  Hook, 
on  the  night  of  the  fifteenth  of  February,  our  battleship  "  Maine," 
lying  in  the  harbor  of  Havana,  was  destroved  by  an  explosion,  and 
266  of  her  men  were  killed.  Because  the  officers'  quarters  were 
toward  the  stern  and  the  explosion  was  near  the  bows,  in  the 
quarters  of  the  crew,  all  the  officers  on  board  were  rescued  except  two. 
A  vivid  description  of  the  catastrophe  was  cabled  to  the  New 
York  Sun  by  a  correspondent  in  Havana  who  heard  the  explosion 
and  was  by  the  side  of  the  poor  maimed  warship  when  she  sank. 
Following  is  an  extract  from  his  story  : 


WEYLER,  BLANCO  AND  THE  RECONCENTRADOS.        93 

"As  I  sat  in  the  park  last  night  about  9.45  p.  m.,  talking  to  some 
friends,  the  skies  over  the  bay  were  seen  to  be  brightly  illuminated 
for  about  ten  seconds. 

"Then  a  most  terrific  explosion  was  heard  which  shook  the 
whole  city  and  threw  it  into  great  consternation.  Knowing  that 
something  unusual  had  occurred,  the  reporter  took  a  cab  and  drove  to 
the  wharves  from  which  direction  the  detonation  had  come. 

"  On  arriving  there  he  noticed  that  the  bay  was  brightly  lit  by 
the  flames  of  a  burning  ship,  which  was  easily  distinguished  as  the 


THE   CATHEDRA^   AT   HAVANA. 


unfortunate  '  Maine  '  by  its  well-known  mast.  Screams  and  cries 
were  heard  coining  from  the  sinking  ship,  for  she  went  partially  down 
very  soon  after  the  explosion. 

"  Mingling  with  the  echoes  of  the  wails  of  the  wounded  and 
drowning  sailors  were  heard  the  shouts  of  '  Viva  Espana  ! '  '  Mueran 
los  Americanos  ! '  '  Manana  tendremos  buena  pesca  en  la  bahia  ! ' 
•('  We  shall  have  good  fishing  in  the  bay  to-morrow ')  and  such 
remarks  coming  from  the  Spanish  rabble,  who  were  congregating  in 
great  numbers  around  the  wharves  and  seemed  greatly  delighted  at 
the  misfortune  which  had  befallen  the  Americans. 


94 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


"  It  was  then  that  for  the  first  time  the  suspicion  of  foul  play 
came  to  the  reporter's  mind. 

"  Having  induced  a  boatman  to  take  him  to  the  side  of  the 
burning  vessel  the  reporter  saw  a  sight  most  horrible  and  not  pos- 
sible to  describe. 

u  Near  the  ship  were  already  two  boats  of  the  '  Maine '  with  a 
few  officers  and  men  who  were  rescuing  their  shipmates.  The  'Al- 
fonso XII.,'  not  far  distant,  had  also  sent  some  of  her  boats,  which 

were  assisting  Some  of  the  sail- 
ors who  were  rescued  were  taken 
to  the  'Alfonso  XII.,'  others  to 
the  '  City  of  Washington,'  some 
to  '  Regla,'  the  steamship  '  Colon,' 
and  to  the  wharf  of  the  Ma- 
china.  It  is  marvelous  how  some 
of  them  could  swim,  as  they  were 
nearly  all  very  severely  hurt. 
One  man  had  both  legs  fracturedr 
another  had  an  ankle  shattered,, 
and  nearly  all  were  severely 
burned.  All  of  them  received 
the  best  attention  wherever  they 
were  taken. 

"  The  sanitary  corps  of  the 
Fire  Department,  as  well  as  of 
the  Spanish  marine  corps,  sta- 
tioned themselves  at  the  Machina 
and  there  gave  the  first  medical  attention  to  the  men  as  they  were 
brought  in.  After  receiving  treatment  the  men  were  carried  in 
litters  or  ambulances  to  the  hospital  of  San  Ambrosio  or  to  the 
'Alfonso  XII.' 

"  The  '  Maine '  immediately  after  the  explosion  began  to  burn 
fiercely.  Every  few  minutes  a  shell  would  burst,  scattering  the 
burning  debris  all  around. 

"  Notwithstanding  the  imminent  danger  of  being  struck,  a  boat 
of  the  '  Maine '  was  constantly  encircling  the  ship  looking  for  any 
one  who  might  be  in  the  water.  A  few  firemen  got  on  board  and 


GENERAL  STEWART   I«.    WOODFORD, 

Ex-Minister  to  Madrid. 


96 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


rescued  two  sailors.  One  of  the  firemen  had  his  clothes  and  hair 
burned. 

"Although  over  two  hundred  men  were  still  on  board,  not  a 
sound  of  a  living  being  could  be  detected  on  the  ship.  Just  then  an 
officer  on  one  of  the  'Maine '  boats  approached  the  ship,  and  with  a 
voice  that  could  be  heard  far  away  in  the  stillness  of  the  night 
called  out : 

"  '  If  there  is  any  one  living  on  board,  for  God's  sake  say  so  ! ' 


GRAN   HOTEL  INGI.ATERRA. 

This  is  the  principal  hotel  in  the  Cuban  Capital  City  and  residence  of  Consul- 
General  Lee. 

"All  waited  for  an  answer,  but  none  came,  save  the  echo  from 
the  shore.  Seeing  that  it  was  useless  to  try  to  save  any  more  near 
the  vessel,  which  was  already  the  iron  coffin  of  hundreds  of  men,  the 
reporter  departed  from  the  scene  and  went  on  board  the  '  City  of 
Washington,'  where  Captain  Sigsbee  was. 

"  The  face  of  the  captain  showed  the  mental  suffering  he  was 


WEYLER,  BLANCO  AND  THE  RECONCENTRADOS. 


97 


undergoing,  and  although  he  was  burned  about  the  head  he  never 
complained.  When  he  was  asked  about  the  cause  of  the  explosion 
he  said  : 

" '  I  cannot  tell  you.     All  was  right  on  board.     The  men  had  just 
retired.     The  keys  of  the  magazine  were  all  in  my  room.' 


A   STREET   SCENE   IN   OLD    MADRID. 

u  From  the  'City  of  Washington'  the  reporter  went  to  the  Palace, 
where  all  the  authorities  both  civil  and  military  had  congregated 
around  General  Blanco.  As  the  reporter  was  going  up  the  steps  of 
the  Palace  he  passed  a  group  of  officers  who  were  discussing  the 
incident.  One  of  them  said  : 


98  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

"  '  I  guess  this  will  bring  the  war  that  we  all  wish.' 

"  At  the  Palace  everybody  said  that  the  cause  of  the  explosion 

was  the  bursting  of  a  torpedo  that  one  of  the  '  Maine's '  men  was 

cleaning.     This  was  absurd.     Everybody  knew  that  no  torpedoes  are 

ever  cleaned  at  10  o'clock  at  night. 

"  This  morning  the  bay  was  swarming  with  little  boats  searching 

for  the  bodies.     About  ten  had  been  found  floating  in  the  water  at 

9  o'clock.     The  part  of  the  deck  of  the  '  Maine '  that  was  still  above 
water  was  like  the  crater  of  a  volcano.      It  was  still   smoking  at 

10  o'clock  this  morning. 

"  The  sailors  in  the  hospitals  are  bearing  their  sufferings  with 
great  courage.  Not  a  complaint  is  heard.  They  all  talk  fight,  and 
they  believe  that  the  '  Maine  '  was  blown  up  purposely. 

"At  3  o'clock  this  afternoon  an  immense  crowd  gathered  in 
front  of  the  City  Hall.  It  had  been  announced  that  the  funeral 
procession  of  the  victims  of  the  '  Maine '  disaster  would  start  from 
this  place. 

"  The  municipal  government  of  Havana  occupies  only  the  west 
side  of  the  big  old  two-story  building  called  the  Palace,  which  is  the 
traditional  residence  of  the  Spanish  governors-general  of  the  island. 
In  front  is  the  well-known  square  called  the  Plaza  de  Armas.  At  the 
rear  of  the  building  is  Mercaderes  street,  and  O'Reilly  street  is  on 
the  east  side.  The  entrance  to  the  City  Hall  is  on  Obispo  street, 
which  is  too  narrow  for  so  great  a  number  of  people  as  gathered 
there  to-day. 

"  The  correspondent  visited  the  hall  in  which  the  twenty-two 
bodies  lay  in  state.  So  unwonted  a  spectacle  will  probably  never  be 
seen  there  again.  The  bodies  of  the  poor  American  sailors  rested  in 
the  Palace  of  the  Spanish  government  in  Cuba.  The  hall  was  filled 
with  wreaths  and  flowers  sent  by  private  corporations,  banking  and 
mercantile  houses,  and  Cuban  and  American  ladies.  There  were 
also  wreaths  sent  by  the  Spanish  army  and  navy.  The  public  was 
allowed  to  pass  through  the  hall  and  see  the  bodies  of  the  victims. 
The  utmost  order  and  decorum  was  observed. 

"  When  the  correspondent  left  the  City  Hall  he  received  informa- 
tion that  eighteen  more  bodies  had  been  rescued  by  the  divers  from 
the  bottom  of  the  bay.  A  few  moments  later  he  learned  that  fifteen 


WEYLER,    BLANCO   AND   THE   RECONCENTRADOS.      99 

more  had  also  been   rescued   by  the  same  divers.     They  were  all 
placed  in  the  City  Hall  with  those  that  were  first  brought  there." 

This  dire  disaster  coming  just  after  the  De  Lome  affair,  the 
strained  situation  became  more  intense  than  ever  between  the  United 
States  and  Spain  ;  and  the  slow  deliberations  of  the  Court  of  Inquiry 
tested  the  patience  of  our  people  not  a  little.  The  Naval  Board  of 
Inquiry  appointed  to  investigate  the  cause  of  the  destruction  of  the 


THE    PALACE   OF   THE    QUEEN   REGENT   OF  SPAIN,  NEAR   MADRID. 

"Maine,"  consisted  of  Captain  Sampson,  of  the  "Iowa,"  Lieutenant 
Marix,  Commander  Potter,  of  the  "  New  York  "  and  Captain  Chadwick 
of  the  same  vessel.  Before  the  report  was  sent  to  Washington,  the 
House  of  Representatives  unanimously  voted  to  place  $50,000,000  at 
the  unqualified  disposal  of  President  McKinley  as  an  emergency  fund 
for  national  defence.  The  continued  delay  of  the  Board  of  Inquiry  and 
the  preparations  that  were  being  made  for  any  emergency  served  to 
confirm  the  belief  that  the  report  would  show  foul  play.  On  March 
28,  more  than  forty  days  after  the  destruction  of  our  noble  warship  and 


ioo  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR    CUBA. 

the  murder  of  our  brave  sailors,  the  President  transmitted  to  Congress 
the  report  of  the  Naval  Board  with  a  brief  message,  in  which  he  said 
that  he  could  not  permit  himself  to  doubt  that  "  the  sense  of  justice 
of  the  Spanish  nation  would  dictate  a  course  of  action  suggested  by 
honor  and  the  friendly  relations  of  the  two  governments."  The 
report  expressed  the  opinion  that  the  explosion  was  caused  by  a  sub- 
marine mine,  and,  while  it  failed  to  fix  the  responsibility  for  the 
disaster,  it  clearly  pointed  to  culpable  negligence,  if  not  direct  com- 
plicity on  the  part  of  Spanish  authorities.  The  Spanish  government 
went  through  the  form  of  appointing  a  board  to  investigate  on  their 
part ;  but  its  work  was  so  brief  and  superficial  that  it  made  no 
impression  on  intelligent  and  honest  people,  and  when  its  conclusions 
were  read,  the  general  impression  seemed  to  be  that  its  finding  was 
prepared  in  Madrid  before  a  diver  saw  the  wreck. 

A  London  dispatch  of  April  13  said  :  "  Mr.  J.  P.  Gibbins,  who 
claims  to  have  handled  the  submarine  mines  which  were  intended  for 
use  in  Havana  harbor,  and  whose  statements  have  been  denied  by  the 
Spanish  Ambassador  here,  says  that  Spain  is  denying  some  things  that 
he  never  said.  He  reasserts  that  about  ninety-six  mines  and  fourteen 
tons  of  gun  cotton  were  furnished  the  Spanish  government  for  use 
at  Havana  by  Latimer,  Clark  &  Co.,  of  London.  He,  as  superintend- 
ent of  the  submarine  department  of  the  firm,  supervised  the  shipping 
of  the  material.  Mr.  Gibbins  again  affirms  that  he  is  able  to  prove 
absolutely  that  the  '  Maine '  was  deliberately  and  wilfully  blown  up. 
He  says  he  believes  he  could  fix  the  act  on  two  men,  and  even  one. 
General  Hyde,  the  shipbuilder,  who  has  just  returned  from  Cuba, 
says:  "No  man  can  view  the  remains  of  the  'Maine'  and  doubt 
that  it  was  an  external  explosion  that  rent  her  sides.  Neither  is 
there  any  doubt  in  my  mind  that  it  was  the  work  of  Spaniards.  We 
didn't  do  it.  The  Cubans  didn't  do  it.  They  couldn't.  They  had 
no  chance  to  put  down  mines  in  the  harbor.  The  '  Maine '  was 
blown  up  with  a  Spanish  mine  and  by  official  act.  I  do  not  think 
that  Governor-General  Blanco  had  anything  to  do  with  the  conspir- 
acy, but  it  must  have  had  Spanish  officials  behind  it.  Professor  R. 
H.  Thurston,  of  Cornell  University,  formerly  of  the  navy,  has  been 
giving  some  time  since  the  publication  of  the  '  Maine '  Board  of 
Inquiry  report  to  calling  the  attention  of  the  readers  of  foreign  and 


WEYLER,  BLANCO  AND  THE  RECONCENTRADOS.      101 

technical  journals  to  the  conclusion,  as  he  asserts,  that  it  gives  'proof, 
positive  and  absolute,'  of  the  facts  that  the  ship  was  destroyed  by  an 
'exterior  explosion,'  that  it  must  have  been  that  of  a  mine,  and  at 
the  port  side  of  the  vessel,  near  the  bow  ;  that  only  an  exceptionally 
heavy  charge  could  have  performed  the  destructive  work  ;  that  such 
a  mine  could  only  have  been  set  by  expert  military  or  naval  engineer 
or  ordnance  officers.  It  could,  therefore,  he  says,  have  been  fired  only 
by  men  officially  connected  with,  but  not  authorized  by,  the  Spanish 
government,  and  thus  the  case  of  the  United  States  is  made  abso- 
lutely unchallengeable.  He  asserts  that  it  is  a  duty  on  the  part  of 
all  members  of  the  engineering  profession  to  examine  these  proofs  as 
presented  in  that  report,  and  the  more  so  as  they,  next  to  naval  and 
military  men,  will  necessarily  direct  public  opinion  in  relation  to  the 
responsibility. 

"  Consul-General  Lee  appeared  before  the  Senate  Committee  on 
Foreign  Relations  and  expressed  himself  as  very  decidedly  of  the 
opinion  that  the  '  Maine '  was  blown  up  by  a  Spanish  officer.  He 
said  : 

"  '  I  have  always  had  an  idea  about  the  '  Maine '  that,  of  course, 
it  was  not  blown  up  by  any  private  individual  or  by  any  private  citi- 
zen, but  it  was  blown  up  by  some  of  the  officers  who  had  charge  of 
the  mines  and  electrical  wires  and  torpedoes  in  the  arsenal  there  who 
thoroughly  understood  their  business,  for  it  was  done  remarkably 
well.  I  do  not  think  General  Blanco,  the  present  Captain  and 
Governor-General  of  the  island  of  Cuba,  had  anything  to  do  with  it. 
I  do  not  think  he  had  any  knowledge  of  it.  I  think  it  came  from 
some  of  the  subaltern  officers  who  had  been  there  under  Weyler,  and 
who  were  probably  anti-Bianco  anyhow,  and  who  had  full  knowledge 
of  the  business.  The  man  who  did  that  work  was  an  officer  thor- 
oughly acquainted  with  explosives  of  all  sorts,  and  who  knew  all 
about  it.  It  was  verv  well  done.'  " 


CHAPTER  V. 


Comparison  of  Military  Strength 


CHAPTER  V. 

SPANISH  AND  AMERICAN   MILITARY  AND   NAVAL  STRENGTH  COMPARED. 

Spain's  eight  army  corps — A  list  of  Spanish  vessels  with  their  speed  and  armament 
— Her  reliance  on  her  navy — Disadvantages  of  distance  from  base  of  supply 
— Coal  is  king — United  States  ships  and  their  commanders — Elements  of 
strength — An  English  estimate — Rapid  mobilization — The  response  to  the 
President's  call— American  inventive  genius  in  activity — Science  harnessed  for 
war — Electric  bombs  and  flying  torpedos — Modern  advances  in  speed. 

I  HAT  is  known  as  the  peace  organization  of  the  Spanish 
army  of  the  peninsula  consists  of  eight  army  corps. 
According  to  the  last  report,  exclusive  of  56  line  bat- 
talions, and  10  rifle  battalions  located  in  Cuba,  there 
were  available  for  mobilization  in  the  peninsula  including  the  garri- 
sons of  the  Balearic  and  Canary  islands,  and  of  North  Africa : 

Infantry — 56  second  battalions  at  1000,  56,000  men  ;  56  third 
battalions  at  1000,  56,000  men,  and  10  rifle  battalions  at  1200 
12,000  men. 

Cavalry — 28  regiments  at  596  horses  and  700  men,  19,600  men. 

Artillery — 14  field  artillery  regiments,  each  of  8  batteries  of  6 
guns,  with  an  equal  number  of  artillery  and  infantry  ammunition 
columns,  25,606  men  ;  3  mountain  artillery  regiments  and  ammuni- 
tion columns,  7254  men  ;  9  battalions  fortress  artillery,  partly  of  6, 
partly  of  4  companies,  8175  men. 

Engineers — 4  sapper  and  miner  regiments  at  2000,  8000  men  ;  i 
pontoon  regiment,  3442  men  ;  i  railway  regiment,  1040  men  ;  i  tele- 
graph battalion,  1271  men  ;  total,  198,389  men. 

To  these  have  to  be  added  the  administrative  and  sanitary  ser- 
vices, 4845  men.  The  cavalry  takes  the  field  with  16,708  horses  ; 
the  artillery  has  816  field  guns. 

The  following  reserve  troops  were  also  available  : 

Infantry — 112  reserve  battalions  (56  regiments  of  3  battalions) 
at  1000  men,  112,000  men. 

(105) 


io6 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA 


Cavalry — 14  reserve  regiments  of  4  squadrons,  with  600  horses 
and  702  men,  9828  men. 

Artillery — 7  field  artillery  regiments,  i  for  each  army  corps 
district,  and  136  guns,  14,140. 

Engineers — New  formations,  6000  men  ;  total,  141,968  men. 

Apart,  therefore,  from  the  troops  in  Cuba,  130,000  men  in  round 
numbers,  there  were  in  March,  1896,  available  on  mobilization  340,- 
ooo  men,  with  25,108  horses  (cavalry),  and  952  guns. 


THE  PATH  ACROSS  THE   PACIFIC  OCEAN. 


The  following  is  a  list  of  the  fifty-eight  Spanish  vessels  of  war 
in  Cuban  waters  in  April,   1898,  together  with  their  type,  displace- 
ment, speed,  armament  and  date  of  launch  : 
Alfonso  XII.,  cruiser,  3900  tons,  12  knots,  6  6.3-in.  B.  L.,  3  57inm., 

2  42inm.,  6  37mm.,  4  machine  guns,  1887. 
Reina  Mercedes,  cruiser,  3090  tons,  15  knots,  6  6.3-in.  B.  L.,  3  57111111., 

2  42mm.,  6  37inm.,  4  machine  guns,  1887. 


MILITARY  AND  NAVAL  STRENGTH  COMPARED.       107 

Marquis  de  la   Ensenada,  cruiser,    1064  tons,    14  knots,  4  4.7-111.,  2 

57ium.,  2  37111111.,  2  machine  guns,  1890. 
Conde  de  Venadito,  cruiser,  1189  tons,  12   knots,  4  4.7-in.   B.  L.,  2 

2.75  in.  B.  L.,  6  37111111.,  i  machine  gun,  1888. 
Infanta  Isabel,   cruiser,    1196  tons,   14.75   knots,   4  4.7-111.  B.  L.,  4 

37mm.,  6  machine  guns,  1885. 
Isabel  II.,  cruiser,  1152  tons,  12.8  knots,  4  4.7-111.  B.  L.,  2  2.75  in.,  i 

42inm.,  9  37mm.,  i  machine  gun,  1886. 


n   Tf 


.  IS'Mi,  by  J.  S.  Johnston. 

U.  S.  CRUISER  "  NEW  YORK.  " 

Filipinas,  torpedo  cruiser,  750  tons,  20  knots,  2  4.7-111.  R.  F.,  4  Nord., 
9  42111111.,  2  machine  guns,  1892. 

Jorge  Juan,  torpedo  cruiser,  935  tons,  13  knots,  3  4-7  in.  B.  L.,  4  ma- 
chine guns,  1876. 

Galica,  torpedo  cruiser,  541  tons,  18.6  knots,  6  57inm.,  i  machine 
gun,  1891. 

Marques  de  Molins,  torpedo  cruiser,  571  tons,  18.6  knots,  6  57mm.,  i 
machine  gun,  1891. 


io8 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


Martin  Alonzo,  torpedo  cruiser,  571  tons,  18.6  knots,  2  4.7-111.  B.  L., 

4  57inm.,  i  machine  gun,  1891. 
Vincente  Yanez,  torpedo  cruiser,  571   tons,   18.6  knots,  6  57111111.,  i 

machine  gun,  1891. 
Nueva    Espana,  torpedo    cruiser,  630 
tons,  18.6  knots,  2  4.7-111.   B.  L., 
4  57mm.,  i  machine  gun,  1889. 
Legaspi,     transport,     1249    tons>    9-6 
knots,  2  3-5-in.  B.  L.,  i  machine 
gun,  1874. 

Magallanes,    gunboat,    527    tons,    n 
knots,  3  4-7-in.  B.  L.,  3  machine 
guns,  1884. 
General  Concha,  gunboat,    548   tons, 

k  j         R     j  ma_ 

chine  guns,  1883. 
Fernando  el   Catolico,  gunboat,  500  tons,  10  knots,  i  5-111.  B.  L.,  i 

machine  gun,  1875. 
Hernan  Cortes,  gunboat,  300  tons,   12.2   knots,  2   2.9-111..   R.  F.,  2 

37111111.  Maxim  guns,  1895. 
Vasco  Nunez  de  Balboa,  gunboat,  300  tons,  13.5  knots,  2  2.9-in.  R. 

F.,  2  37mm.  Maxim  guns,  1895. 
Alsedo,  gunboat,  217  tons,  9  knots,  i  4.7-111.  B.  L.,  i  machine  gun, 

1882. 
Cuba  Espanola,  gunboat,  255  tons,  8  knots,  i  5-1.111.  B.  L.  i  machine 

gun,  1870. 


THEO.  ROOSEVELT. 
Organizer  of  the  "Rough  Riders." 


U.  S.  TORPEDO  BOAT  "CUSHING." 

Contramaestre,  gunboat,  179  tons,  9  knots,  i  5.1-111.  B.  L.,  1869. 
Diego  Velasquez,  gunboat,  200  tons,  12.25  knots,  2  57111111.,  i  17111111., 
1895. 


MILITARY  AND  NAVAL  STRENGTH  COMPARED.        109 


Ponce  de  Leon,  gunboat,  200  tons,  12.5  knots,  2  37111111.,  i   37111111., 

1895. 
Alvarado,  gunboat,  100  tons,  19  knots,  i  57111111.,  i  37inm.,  1895. 


QUARTERDECK    OF    ' '  BROOKLYN.  " 

Sandoval,  gunboat,  100  tons,  19  knots,  i  57inm.,  i  37111111.,  1895. 
Aguila,  gunboat,  70  tons,  14  knots,  i   37111111.,  1892. 
Estrella,  gunboat,  43  tons,  10.5  knots,  i  42111111.,  189=;. 
Fleclia,  gunboat,  43  tons,  10.5  knots, 

i  42inm.,  1895. 
Ligera,  gunboat,  43  tons,  10.5  knots, 

i  42111111.,  1895. 
Lince,  gunboat,  43  tons,  10.5  knots, 

i  42inm.,  1895. 
Satelite,  gunboat,  43  tons,  10. 5  knots, 

i  42mm.,  1895. 
Vigia,  gunboat,  43  tons,  10.5  knots, 

i  42inm.,  1895. 
Alota,rgunboat,  43  tons,   10.5  knots, 

i  42mm.,  1895. 


COMMANDER   CRAIG,    U.    S.    N. 


no 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


Ardilla,  gunboat,  43  tons,  10.5  knots,  i  42111111.,  1895. 
Comete,  gunboat,  43  tons,  10.5  knots,  i  42inm.,  1895. 
Fradera,  gunboat,  43  tons,  10.5  knots,  i  42111111.,  1895. 

Gaviota,     gunboat,    43    tons,     10.5 

knots,  i  42111111.,  1895. 
Golondrina,    gunboat,   43    tons,    10 

knots,  i  42111111.,  1895. 
Ahnendares,    gunboat,  40  tons,   10 

knots,  i  42inm.,  1895. 
Baracoa,  gunboat,  40  tons,  10  knots, 

i  42111111.,  1895. 
Cauto,  gunboat,  40  tons,  10  knots, 

i  42inm.,  1895. 
Guantanamo,  gunboat,  40  tons,   10 

knots,  i  42inm.,  1895. 
Yumuri,  gunboat,  40  tons,  10  knots, 

i  42111111.,  1895. 
Mayari,  gunboat,  40  tons,  10  knots, 

i  42mm.,  1895. 
El  Dependiente,  gunboat,  40  tons, 

10  knots,  i  42111111.,  1896. 
Del  Gado  Parejo,  gunboat,  85  tons, 

10  knots,  i  37mm.,  1895. 
Guardian,    gunboat,    65    tons,     10 

knots,  i  37inm.,  1895. 
Esperanza,    gunboat,    22     tons,    n 

knots,  i  37mm.,  1895. 
Dardo,  gunboat,  26  tons,  n]  knots, 

i  37mm.,  1895. 
Centinela,    gunboat,    30    tons,    9.5 

knots,  i  37mm.,  1875. 
Caridad,  gunboat,  34  tons,  7  knots, 

i  machine  gun,  1881. 
Lealtad,  gunboat,  20  tons,  7  knots, 

i  machine  gun  1887. 

Intrepida,  gunboat,  20  tons,  9.7  knots,  i  machine  gun,  1895. 
Mensajera,  gunboat,  20  tons,  10  knots,  i  25mm.  machine,  1895. 


REAR   ADMIRAL   NORTON,    U. 


REAR    ADMIRAL   SICAKD,    U.    S.    N. 


MILITARY  AND  NAVAL  STRENGTH  COMPARED.       in 
Criollo,  surveying  vessel,  201  tons,  8  knots,  2  5-in.  Parrots,  i  machine, 


u.  s.  CRUISER  "RAI.EIGH.  " 


Valiente,  gun  vessel. 
Antonio  Lopez,  gun  vessel. 


U.  S.  RAM   "KATAHDIN." 


Before  the  naval   combat  near  Manila,  Philippine  Islands,  the 
opposing  fleets  were : 


ii2  COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 

United  States. 

Name.  Class.  Tonnage.  Armament. 

Baltimore  ....  Cruiser  .     .  .  4,413  4  8-in.  and    6  6-in. 

Olympia  (flagship)  .  Cruiser  .     .  .  5,870  4  8-in.  and  10  5-111. 

Concord      ....  Gunboat  .     .  .  1,710  6  6-in. 

Boston Cruiser  .     .  .  3,000  5  6-in.   and    2  8-in. 

Petrel Gunboat  .     .  .  892  4  6  in. 

Raleigh       ....  Cruiser  .     .  .  3,213  10  5-in,  and   i  6-in. 

Monocacy  ....  Cruiser  .     .  .  1,370  4  8-in. 

Hugh  McCulloch     .  Revenue  cutter  small. 
Zafiro,  auxiliary  cruiser. 
Nanshan,  store  ship. 

Spain. 

Name.  Class/  Tonnage.  Guns. 

Reina  Cristina Cruiser     .     .     .     3,090        6  6.2  in. 

Castilla Cruiser     .     .     .     3,342         4  5.9  in. 

Velasco Cruiser     .     .     .      1,139         4  3-6  in- 

Don  Juan  de  Austria      .     .     .     Cruiser     .     .     .      1,152         44-7  in- 
Don  Antonio  de  Ulloa  .     .     .     Cruiser     .      .     .     1,152         4  4.7  in. 

El  Cano Gunboat  .     .     .         525         3  4.7  in. 

General  Lezo Gunboat  .     .     .         525         34-7  i11- 

Marqtiez  del  Dtiero    ....     Gunboat  .     .     .         500         i  6.2  in. 

Paragua        Gunboat  ...         137 

Manila Transport. 

Cebu Transport. 

Alava Transport. 

These  vessels  had  from  two  to  five  torpedo  tubes. 

Besides  these  war  vessels  in  the  Cuban  waters  and  the  fleet  near 
the  Philippines,  before  the  contest  on  May  i,  Spain  has  :  the  Cristobal 
Colon,  the  Terror,  the  Almirante  Oquendo,  the  Maria  Theresa,  the 
Furor,  the  Pluton  and  the  Vizcaya. 

In  order  to  maintain  herself  at  all,  Spain's  policy  must  be  one 
of  naval  activity  ;  and  as  a  Spanish  officer  recently  declared  that  the 
sea  was  Spain's  friend,  and  that  she  would  show  the  United  States 
how  the  Atlantic  would  be  made  to  tell  in  her  behalf  during  the  war, 
evidently  she  hopes  to  gain  her  advantage  on  the  sea.  Cuba  as  a 
strategic  base,  is  a  necessity  for  Spanish  success  in  American  waters  ; 
and  with  this  island  an  objective,  her  chances  of  victory  should  be 


MILITARY  AND  NAVAL  STRENGTH  COMPARED.       113 


considered.  The  insurgents  have  so  successfully  turned  the  advantage 
of  the  island  to  their  own  end  that  the  army  of  Spain  is  fed  by  bulk 
imported  for  that  purpose.  Bearing  directly  upon  this  important 
question  the  words  of  one  of  our  naval  offi- 
cers are  very  significant : 

"  Modern  ships  of  war  are  great  coal 
consumers,  and  their  demands  in  that  direc- 
tion must  be  met  to  make  the  vessels  effective. 
Setting  aside  the  coal  already  in  Cuba  and 
available  for  the  purposes  of  the  Spanish  fleet, 
and  leaving  out  of  the  question  for  the  present 
the  harassing  internal  condition  of  the  island, 
it  is  necessary  to  know  only  that  of  the  coal 
already  in  Cuba  quite  two-thirds  of  it  came 
from  the  United  States,  and  also  that  coal 
coming  from  any  neutral  nation  would  be  contraband,  and  liable  to 
capture,  no  matter  what  the  flag  under  which  it  claimed  protection. 

"With  Cuba  under  blockade,  the  next  nearest  coaling  stations 
belonging  to  Spain  are  in  the  Canary  Islands,  distant  something  like 
3500  miles;  and  there  is  not  one  of  her  vessrls  able  to  come  from 


CAPT.  BAKER,  U.  S.   N. 


U.  S.  BATTLESHIP  "OREGON," 

Which  came  around  the  Horn  to  the  Atlantic  when  the  ivar  began. 

there,  even  at  the  most  economical  speed,  and  still  have  enough  coal  left 
to  make  her  serviceable  but  for  a  precious  short  while.  By  interna- 
tional law,  a  neutral  port  can  give  vessels  of  belligerent  nations  coal 
•enough  only  to  carry  them  safely  to  the  next  nearest  of  their  national 

8 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


PHIUP    HIGHBORN, 

Chief  Constructor. 


ports ;  and  it  is  quite  needless  to  remark  that  Cuban  ports,  not  Span- 
ish ports,  would  govern  strictly  the  ships  of  Spain.  In  effect,  then, 
assuming  the  Spanish  possession  of  the  island,  Spain's  ships  would 
have  either  to  depend  upon  the  Canary  Islands  or  upon  such  doubtful 
supplies  of  coal  as  could  be  smuggled  into  the 
strictly  Spanish  ports  of  Cuba. 

"  How  are  we  prepared  to  intercept  her 
first  move,  i.  e.,  her  rally  about  Cuba,  and  then 
to  meet  her  possible  second  stroke  in  the 
shape  of  operations  against  our  own  seaboard? 
Everything  would  depend  upon  our  securing 
the  command  of  the  sea ;  and  in  this  case 
command  of  the  sea  would  first  mean  the 
seizing  of  the  only  strategic  base  near  our 
seacoast  open  to  Spanish  occupancy." 

We  give  a  full  list  of  the  vessels  of  the 
United  States  Navy  in  Commission  : 
North  Atlantic  Station. — Captain  William  T.  Sampson. 
Asiatic  Station. — Acting  Admiral  George  Dewey. 
Pacific  Station. — Rear  Admiral  J.  N.  Miller. 

Flying  Squadron. — Commodore  W.  S. 

Schley. 

First^  District  Mosquito  Fleet. — Lieu- 
tenant Commander  H.  G.  O.  Colby. 
Second     District    Mosquito    Fleet. — 
Lieutenant    Commander    W.    L. 
Field. 

Third  District  Mosquito  Fleet. — Lieu- 
tenant Commander  C.  T.  Forse. 
Fourth     District     Mosquito    Fleet. — 
Lieutenant    Commander    W.    H. 

REAR   ADMIRAL  WALKER,    U.    S.    N.  Recdcr. 

Fifth    District    Mosquito    Fleet. — Lieutenant    Commander    C.    H. 

Arnold. 
Seventh   District    Mosquito    Fleet. — Lieutenant  Commander  A.  V. 

Wadhams. 
Adams,  6  guns,  Commander  W.  C.  Gibson  (Training  ship). 


MILITARY  AND  NAVAL  STRENGTH  COMPARED.       115 

Albany,  6  guns  (cruiser  recently  purchased  from  Brazil).     At  New- 
castle, England,  fitting  out  to  proceed  to  the  United  States. 
Alert,  4  guns,  Commander  E.  H.  C.  Leutze  (p.  s.).     At  San  Juan  del 

Sur,  Nicaragua. 

Alliance,     7    guns,     Commander 
A.    Ross     (Training     ship). 
Off  Monroe,  Va.,  April  14. 
Amphitrite,  6  guns,  Captain  C.  J. 
Barclay  (n.  a.  s.).     Gunnery 
vessel.     At  Key  West,   Fla. 
Annapolis,   6   guns,    Commander 

J.  J.  Hunker. 
Baltimore,   10  guns,   Captain   N. 

M.  Dyer  (a.  s.). 

Bancroft,  4  guns,  Commander  R. 
Clover  (n.  a.  s.).  At  Navy 
Yard,  Boston. 

Bennington,  6  guns,  Commander 
H.  E.  Nichols  (p.  s.).     Ad- 
TACK  TARS'  LEISURE  HOUR,  u.  s.  N.  dress  care  Navy  Pay  Office, 

San  Francisco.     At  Honolulu.     (Flagship.) 
Boston,  8  guns,  Commander  B.  P.  Lamberton  (a.  s.). 
Brooklyn,   20  guns,   Captain  F.  A.  Cook  (flying  s.).     (Flagship  of 
Commodore  W.  S.  Schley,  commanding  the  Flying  Squadron.) 
Castine,  8  guns,  Commander  R.  M.  Berry  (n. 

a.  s.).     At  Key  West,  Fla. 
Catskill    (monitor),   Lieutenant  M.  E.  Hall. 
Ordered    into     commission    at    League 
Island.     Will  go  to  Boston. 
Cincinnati,  u  guns,  Captain  C.  M.  Chester,- 

(n.  a.  s.).     At  Key  West,  Fla. 
Columbia,   n    guns,    Captain   J.    H.    Sands 

(flying   s.).     At    Hampton    Roads,    Ya.        .^^^H^AJB^, 
(See  Brooklyn). 

Concord,  6  guns,  Commander  A.  Walker  (a. s.). 
Constellation,  Commander  John   McGowan 

(Training  ship).      Newport,  R.  I.  COMMANDER  M'CUIAOM, 


n6 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


Gushing  (torpedo  boat),  Lieutenant  A.  Gleaves  (n.  a.  s.).     At  Key 

West,  Fla. 
Detroit,  10  guns,  Commander  J.  H.  Dayton  (n.  a.  s.).    At  Key  West, 

Fla. 
Dolphin  (dispatch  boat),  2  guns,  Commander  H.  W.  Lyon  (n.  a.  s.). 

Sailed  from  New  York  for  Key  West,  April  n. 

Dupont  (torpedo  boat),  Lieutenant  S.  S.  Wood  (n.  a.  s.).     Flag  boat 

of  the  flotilla.  At 
Key  West,  Fla. 
Enterprise,  6  guns, 
Commander  Jos. 
G.  Eaton.  (Nau- 
tical schoolship  of 
Massachusetts.) 
Ericsson  (torpedo 
boat),  Lieutenant 
N.R.  Usher  (n.  a. 
s.).  At  Key  West, 
Fla. 

Fern  (dispatch  boat), 
Lieutenant  Com- 
mander    W.     S. 
Cowles    (n.  a.  s.). 
At  Key  West,  Fla. 
Franklin,   30  guns, 
Captain  Silas  W. 
Terry    (receiving 
ship).     At    Navy 
COMMODORE  M'NAiR,  u.  s.  N.  Yard, Norfolk, Va. 

Foote  (torpedo  boat),  Lieutenant  Win.  L.  Rodgers  (n.  a.  s.).     At  Key 

West,  Fla. 

Gwin  (torpedo  boat),  Lieutenant  C.  S.  Williams  (n.  a.  s.).     At  New- 
port, R.  I. 
Helena,  8   guns,  Commander  W.  T.  Swineburne  (n.  a.  s.).     At   Key 

West,  Fla. 

Independence   (receiving   ship),   Captain    Louis    Kempff.     At   Mare 
Island,  Cal. 


MILITARY   AND   NAVAL   STRENGTH    COMPARED.      117 


Indiana,  16  guns,  Captain  H.  C.  Taylor  (n.  a.  s.).     At  Key  West,  Fla. 
Iowa,  1 8  guns,  Captain  R.  D.  Evans  (n.  a.  s.).     At  Key  West,  Fla. 
Jason  (monitor),  Lieutenant  H.  F.  Fichbohm.     At  League  Island. 
Katahdin  (harbor  defence  ram),  Commander  Geo.  F.  F.  Wilde  (n.  a.  s.). 
Lehigh  (monitor),  Lieutenant  R.  G.  Peck.     Ordered  into  commission 

at  League  Island. 
Leyden   (tug),    Acting  Boatswain  J.  W.   Angus   (n.  a.  s.).     At   Key 

West,  Fla. 
Machias,  8   guns,  Commander  J.  F.  Merry   (n.  a.  s.).     Sailed  from 

Boston  April  7,  for  Key  West,  Fla. 
Mayflower,  Commander   M.  R.   S.  Mackenzie.     At   Newport,  R.  L, 

April        14,        tO    BnKDHBBMKs  I 

receive  torpe- 
do outfit.  Will 
return  to  Key 
West. 

Marblehead,    10 
guns,      Com- 
mander B.  H. 
McCalla  (n.  a. 
s.).     At 
Key 
West, 
Fla. 

Marietta,    6 

gUnS,  Copyrighted  18117,  l>y  J.  S.  Johnston. 

Coil!-  u-  s-   CRUISER    "BROOKLYN." 

mander  F.   M.  Symonds  (p.   s.).      Left  Callao,   Peru,    April   2, 

for  Valparaiso. 

Massachusetts,  16  guns,  Captain  F.  J.  Higginson  (flying  s.). 
Mangrove  (tender),  Lieutenant  Commander  W.  H.  Everett    (n.  a.  s.). 

Key  West,  Fla. 
Miantonomah   (monitor),  4  guns,  Captain  M.  L.  Johnson.     League 

Island  Navy  Yard,  Pa.  (n.  a.  s.).      Will  proceed  to  Key  West, 

Fla. 
Michigan,   4    guns,   Boatswain    C.    Miller.      (Special    service.)      At 

Erie,  Pa. 


i8 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


Minneapolis,     u    guns,    Captain    T.    F.    Jewell    (flying   s.).       (See 

Brooklyn.) 
Mohican,  10  guns,  Commander  G.  M.  Book  (Training  ship).     The 

Mohican  sailed  from  San  Francisco  for  Honolulu  March  n. 
Montauk,  Commander  E.  T.  Strong.     At  League  Island. 

Monadnock,  6  guns 
(monitor),  Cap- 
tain W.  H.  Whit- 
ing (p.  s.).  At 
Mare  Island, 
Cal.  Ordered  to 
Port  Angeles, 
Wash. 

Monocacy,  6  guns, 
Comman- 
der O.  W. 
Far  en  holt 
(a.  s.).  At 
Woo  Sung, 
China. 

u.  s.  CRUISER  "BALTIMORE."  Monterey,  4 

guns  (p.  s.).     At   San    Francisco,  Cal.,   April   14.     Ordered   to 
Puget  Sound. 
Montgomery,  10  guns,  Commander  G.   A.  Converse  (n.  a.  s.).      At 

Norfolk,  Va. 

Nahant  (monitor),  Lieutenant  C.  S.  Richman.    At  League  Island,  Pa. 
Nashville,   8   guns,   Commander  W.   Maynard   (n.   a.  s.).     At   Key 

West,  Fla. 
New  Orleans,  6  guns,  Captain  W.  M.  Folger.     Left  Halifax,  N.  S., 

April  13,  for  New  York  and  arrived  April  14. 
Newport,    6    guns,    Commander   B.   F.   Tilley   (n.   a.   s.).      At  Key 

West,  Fla. 
New  York,  18  guns,  Captain  F.  E.  Chadwick  (n.  a.  s.).     (Flagship.) 

At  Key  West,  Fla. 
Nezinscot  (tug),  Mate  C.  H.  Cleveland.     Sailed  April  6  from  New 

York  for  Key  West. 
Olympia,  14  guns,  Captain  Charles  V.  Gridley  (a.  s.).     (Flagship.) 


MILITARY  AND  NAVAL  STRENGTH  COMPARED.        119 


Oregon,    16  guns,  Captain   C.  E. 

Clark    (n.    a.    s.).       Arrived 

April  5  at  Callao  and  sailed 

April  7,  after  coaling. 

Pensacola,  Captain  H.  Glass,  Mare 

Island,  Cal. 
Petrel,  4  guns,  Commander  E.  P. 

Wood  (a.  s.). 

Porter  (torpedo  boat),  Lieutenant 
J.  C.  Fremont  (n.  a.  s.).  At 
Key  West,  Fla. 

Puritan  (monitor),  10  guns,  Cap- 
tain  P.  F.  Harrington  (n.  a. 
s.).     At  Key  West,  Fla. 
Raleigh,    n   guns,  Captain  J.  B. 
Coghlan  (a.  s.).    Address  care 
B.    F.   Stevens,   4   Trafalgar 
square,  London,  England. 
Richmond  (receiving  ship),  Cap- 
tain J.  J.  Read.     At  League 
Island. 
Rodgers  (torpedo  boat),  Lieutenant  J.  L.  Jayne  (n.  a.  s.). 

more,  Md.     Will  go  to  Key  West. 
St.  Mary's,  8  guns.     (Public  Marine  School  of  New  York.)     At  New 

York.     Address  care  Board  of  Education,  New  York  City. 
Samoset  (tug),  Acting  Boatswain  P.  Deery  (n.  a.  s.).     Used  as  a  dis- 
patch boat.     At  Key  West,  Fla. 
San  Francisco,  12  guns,  Captain  R. 
P.    Leary.     Arrived  off  Tomp- 
kinsville,    April    14,    with  the 
New  Orleans. 

Saratoga,  Lieutenant  W.  W.  Gilmer 
in  temporary  command  (Penn- 
sylvania schoolship).  At  Phila- 
delphia, Pa. 

OUR  FIRST  STARRY  FLAG.  Somers   (torpedo   boat),   Lieutenant 

Used  by  Paul  Jones  on  the  "Alliance. ' '  John  J.  Knapp.      At  Falmouth, 


COMMANDER   WII.DE, 

Of  the  Ram  "Katahdin,"  U.  S.  N. 

At  Balti- 


120  COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 

England,  April  15.  Reported  damaged  by  heavy  weather.  Now 
en  route  to  United  States  with  Topeka. 

Stiletto  (torpedo  boat),  Lieutenant  H.  Hutchins  (n.  a.  s.).  At  New- 
port, R.  I. 

Talbot  (torpedo  boat),  Lieutenant  W.  R.  Shoemaker  (n.  a.  s.).  At 
Newport,  R.  I. 


THE   HOLLAND    SUBMARINE   TORPEDO   BOAT, 

As  she  appeared  under  test  in  Raritan  Bay. 

Terror,  4  guns  (monitor),  Captain  N.  Ludlow  (n.  a.  s.).  At  Key 
West,  Fla. 

Texas,  8  guns,  Captain  J.  W.  Philip  (flying  s.).  Hampton  Roads, 
Va.  (See  Brooklyn.) 

Topeka,  Lieutenant  J.  J.  Knapp,  armored  cruiser,  purchased  in  Eng- 
land. En  route  to  United  States  with  torpedo  boat  Somers.  At 
Fal mouth,  England,  April  15. 


MILITARY  AND  NAVAL  STRENGTH  COMPARED.       121 

Vermont,  i  gun,  Captain  Merrill  Miller  (receiving  ship).  At  New 
York  Navy  Yard. 

Vesuvius  (dynamite  gun  vessel),  Lieutenant-Commander  J.  E.  Pills- 
bury  (n.  a.  s.).  At  Newport,  R.  I.,  April  14. 

Vicksburg,  6  guns,  Commander  A.  B.  H.  Liilie  (training  ship). 

Wabash,  20  guns,  Captain  H.  F.  Picking  (receiving  ship).  At 
Boston,  Mass. 


U.  S.  TRANSPORT  STEAMSHIP  "FERN." 

Wheeling,  6  guns,  Commander    Uriel    Sebree    (s.  s.).     At    Seattle, 

Wash.,  April  2,  and  was  en  route  to  Dyea,  Alaska,  April  6,  from 

Union,  B.  C. 
Winslow  (torpedo  boat),   Lieutenant  J.   B.   Bernadou  (n.  a.  s.).     At 

Key  West,  Fla. 
Wilmington,  8  guns,  Commander  C.   C.  Todd  (n.  a.   s.).     At  Key 

West,  Fla. 


122  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

FISH   COMMISSION   VESSEL. 

Fish  Hawk  (R  C.  vessel),  Lieutenant  F.  Swift,     (s.  d.)     Avoca,  N.  C. 
The  following  is  a  list  of  auxiliary  vessels  comprising  yachts, 
tugs,  etc.,  being  made  ready  for  service  : 

Algonquin,  Ensign  W.  S.  Crosley.     At  New  York  Navy  Yard. 
Alice.     At  Norfolk,  Va. 
Armeria,  Commander  R.  Rush. 


VIEW   OF  THE  PORT  OF   KEY  WEST,    FI,A. 

Key  West  is  the  southernmost  city  of  the  United  States,  and  is  at  the  present  time  the 
scene  of  great  naval  activity  in  consequence  of  the  Cuban  war.  It  is  the  rendez- 
vous of  our  Atlantic  fleet. 

Canonicus.     At  Hampton  Roads,  Va. 

Dixie,  Commander  C.  H.  Davis.     At  Newport  News,  Va. 

Eagle,  Lieutenant  William  H.  H.  Southerland.     At  New  York  Navy 

Yard. 

Hamilton.     At  Hampton  Roads,  Va. 
Hawk,  Lieutenant  J.  Hood.     At  New  York  Navy  Yard. 
Hornet,  Lieutenant  James  M.  Helm.     At  New  York  Navy  Yard. 


MILITARY   AND   NAVAL   STRENGTH   COMPARED.      123 

Hudson.     At  Norfolk,  Va. 

Irawaddy  (collier).     At  New  York  Navy  Yard. 

Lebanon,  Commander  J.  G.  Eaton. 

Mahopac.     At  Fisher's  Island,  New  York. 

Manhattan.     At  Fisher's  Island,  New  York. 

Maple,  Lieutenant  Commander  W.  Kellogg. 

Menemsha.     At  Norfolk,  Va.,  being  refitted  as  a  collier. 

Merrimac,  Commander  J.  M.  Miller.    Coal  vessel  at  Newport  News,  Va. 


Copyrighted,  1896,  by  J.  S.  Johnston. 

U.    S.    BATTLESHIP    "INDIANA." 

Niagara,  Commander  G.  A.  Bicknell.  Water  distilling  boat.  At 
Navy  Yard,  New  York,  preparing  for  service. 

Morrill.     At  Hampton  Roads,  Va. 

Osceola,  Lieutenant  J.  L.  Ptircell.     At  Norfolk,  Va. 

Potomac  (tug).     New  Orleans. 

Prairie,  Commander  C.  T.  Train.  Expects  to  sail  April  22  for  New- 
port News,  Va. 

Saturn  (collier),  Commander  S.  W.  Very.  At  New  York  Navy  Yard. 
Ready  for  service. 

Scorpion,  Lieutenant  Commander  A.  Marix.  At  New  York  Navy 
Yard. 


124 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR  FOR   CUBA. 


Sioux,  EnsigirW.  R.  Gherardi.     At  Key  West,  Fla.     Address  there. 
Solace,  Commander  G.  C.  Reiter  (hospital  ship).     At  Norfolk,  Va., 

fitting  out. 

Sterling,  Commander  R.  E.  Impey.     Coal  vessel. 
Suwanee. 
Tecumseh,  Lieutenant  G.  R.  Evans.      At  Norfolk,  Va.,  from   New 

York. 
Uncas,  Lieutenant  F.  R.  Brainard.     Sailed  April  13  from  New  York 

Navy  Yard  for  Norfolk,  Va. 


U.   S.    HATTLESHIP   "MASSACHUSETTS." 

Vixen,  Lieutenant  A.  Sharp.     At  League  Island,  Va. 

Wasp,  Lieutenant  A.  Ward.     At  New  York  Navy  Yard. 

Windom.     At  Hampton  Roads,  Va. 

Wompatuck,  Lieutenant  C.  W.  Jungen.      At  New  York  Navy  Yard. 

Yankee,  Commander  W.  H.  Brownson.     At  New  York  Navy  Yard. 

Yosemite,  Commander  W.  H.  Emory.     At  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

Zafiro,  supply  vessel,  Asiatic  squadron. 


MILITARY   AND   NAVAL  STRENGTH   COMPARED.      125 

Setting  aside  the  questions  of  personnel,  speed  and  coal  endur- 
ance, and  considering  the  total  displacement  and  the  total  muzzle 
energy  and  the  total  weight  of  projectiles  fired  by  all  of  the  regular 
naval  vessels  on  each  side  during  a  period  of  three  minutes,  the  pres- 
ent available  force  on  each  side  may  be  represented  as  follows  : 


U.   S.    BATTLESHIP    "TEXAS." 
United  States. 

Tons  displacement 154,122 

Muzzle  energy,  foot-tons 6,670,350 

Weight  of  projectiles,  in  pounds 318,156 

Spain. 

Tons  displacement 91,912 

Muzzle  energy,  foot-tons 7,109,863 

Weight  of  projectiles,  in  pounds 254>599 

The  term  "  muzzle  energy  "  expresses  the  impulse  or  destructive 
force  with  which  the  shell  leaves  the  muzzle  of  the  gun.     One  who 


126  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

has  closely  studied  all  the  questions  involved  in  our  present  contest 
speaks  thus  significantly  : 

"While  our  naval  supiemacy  cannot  be  questioned,  the  com- 
mand of  the  sea  can  be  maintained  only  by  sufficient  support  in  the 
way  of  coast  defences ;  and,  with  the  single  exception  of  New  York 
harbor,  it  may  be  seriously  questioned  whether  any  of  our  fortifica- 
tions are  able  to  hold  an  enemy  off  without  the  assistance  of  the 
navy.  With  our  long  line  of  seaboard  reaching  from  Eastport,  Me., 


U.    S.    CRUISER    "  COLUMBIA." 

all  the  way  down  to  the  Gulf,  and  around  to  the  border  line  of 
Mexico,  it  is  manifestly  impossible  for  the  navy  to  hold  its  legitimate 
position  at  sea  and  to  give  that  support  to  our  land  defences  now 
demanded  by  their  condition. 

"  It  is  quite  possible  to  so  mine  the  approaches  to  our  cities  that 
they  shall  be  free  from  the  threat  of  actual  presence  of  the  enemyr 
but  the  fortifications  of  many  of  them  are  not  enough  in  themselves 
to  prevent  hostile  ships  from  lying  with  comparative  security  in  the 


MILITARY   AND   NAVAL  STRENGTH   COMPARED.      127 

offing  and  shelling  destructively  a  number  of  these  towns.  The 
possible  bombarding  range  of  even  a  9.2  inch  gun  is  quite  twelve 
miles  ;  and  while  the  large  target  offered  by  a  city  would  almost 
certainly  invite  attack,  the  distant  mark  of  a  moving  craft  would 
prove  quite  too  much  for  effective  fire  from  any  of  our  land  batteries. 
"  It  is  imperative,  then,  that  we  intercept  Spain's  first  coup,  and 
prevent  her  securing  control  of  Cuba  and  Costa  Rica,  and  throw  her 


U.  S.  CRUISER    "MINNEAPOLIS." 

upon  the  distant  resources  of  Spain  and  the  coaling  stations  in  the 
Canaries.  It  would  not  be  necessary  for  us  to  undertake  an  extensive 
occupation  of  Cuba.  By  recognizing  the  insurgents,  we  at  once 
become  possessed  virtually  of  a  native  ally,  and  an  acclimatized  army 
of  occupation,  and  be  saved  to  that  extent  the  insalubrious  conse- 
quences upon  our  own  men. 

"  In  the  matter  of  personnel,  we  may  reasonably  count  upon  that 
Anglo-Saxon  stability  and  courage  common  to  us  as  a  people,  and 
too,  upon  that  wider  intelligence,  adaptability  and  unity  of  purpose 


128 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


born  of  free  institutions  ;  while  in  opposition  we  should  have  to  face 
the  nervous,  excitable  character  of  the  Spaniard,  hampered  by  a 
species  of  educational  indifference  and  sloth  born  of  long  years  of 
national  torpor,  aristocratic  dominance,  and  a  hazy,  unreasoning  faith 
in  past  glory. 

"  In  the  matter  of  instruments,   our  modern  navy  is  older  than 
that  of  Spain,  while  in  practice  our  moderate  squadron  evolutions  of 


U.   S.    CRUISER    "CHARLESTON." 

recent  years  place  us  in  advance  of  the  Spaniard,  even  though  we 
are  behind  the  rest  of  the  principal  European  navies." 

In  this  connection  it  is  interesting  to  read  the  opinion  of  an 
English  admiral  on  the  comparative  strength  of  the  Spanish  and 
American  navies  : 

"  Spain  has  a  few  fine  warships,  but  her  most  formidable  naval 
arm  is  her  torpedo-destroyer  flotilla.  Those  vessels  can  do  immense 
•damage  if  properly  handled. 

"As  for  Spain's  big  ships,"  the  admiral  continued,  "  unless  I  am 
greatly  mistaken  they  will  prove  utterly  ineffective,  apart  from  the 


MILITARY   AND   NAVAL  STRENGTH   COMPARED.      129 

important  difficulty  of  coaling,  which  is  not  insurmountable.  The 
Spanish  officers  are  quite  inexperienced  in  big  gun  practice,  and  can 
hit  nothing  with  them  unless  by  a  fluke. 

"  I  can  tell  you  from  personal  investigation  that  Spain  has  spent 
no  money  to  speak  of  in  training  her  officers  to  use  these  big  guns. 
She  can't  afford  it. 

"  Why,  our  navy  spends  more  annually  in  gun  practice  than  all 


U.    S.    CRUISER    "CHICAGO." 

the  other^navies  in  the  world  together.  Still  our  handling  of  these 
weapons  leaves,  in  my  opinion,  at  least  much  to  be  desired. 

"  The  Spanish  sailors  are  courageous  and  fine  seamen,  but  these 
qualities  are  of  little  avail  if  they  are  mere  apprentices  at  utilizing 
the  weapons  in  their  hands. 

"  I  know  both  the  American  and  the  Spanish  navies.  I  have 
been  on  most  of  the  ships  of  both. 

"  I  repeat,  except  for  the  Spanish  torpedo  destroyers,  the  Ameri- 
can fleet  will  have  no  difficulty  in  asserting  its  undoubted  superiority. 
9 


I30 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


"  If  the  torpedo  destroyers  were  eliminated  it  would  be  as  un- 
equal a  contest  as  that  between  China  and  Japan,  where  the  main 
reason  for  the  Chinese  helplessness  was  inexperience  in  using  the 
big  guns." 

Although  in  time  of  peace  our  standing  army  has  been  less  than 
30,000  men,  the  preparation  for  the  mobilization  of  more  than 
100,000  men  in  a  few  days  along  the  Atlantic  coast,  gives  an  intima- 


u.  s.  CRUISER  "CINCINNATI." 

tion  of  what  we  can  do  in  this  line  should  events  require  it.  When 
the  President  called  for  125,000  volunteers,  immediately  every  State 
in  the  Union  made  an  enthusiastic  response ;  and  it  was  officially 
reported  that  in  ten  days  one  million  of  men  would  willingly  enlist 
if  the  country  needed  their  services.  The  following  is  the  official 
apportionment  of  the  various  States  and  Territories  on  a  basis  of  a 
call  for  50,000  men,  the  proportions  being  maintained  according  to 
the  same  ratio  in  the  case  of  calls  for  100,000,  150,000  and  200,000- 
men  : 


MILITARY   AND   NAVAL   STRENGTH   COMPARED.      131 

Apportionment  for  Call  for  50,000   Men. 

On  National  Basis 

States.  Strength.  Guard.             Population. 

Alabama 4,500  1,061  1,000 

Arkansas      2,400  633  810 

California         4,400  !,623  I>295 

Colorado 1,800  465  530 

Connecticut 3, 800  1,220  643 

Delaware 1,000  194  136 

Florida 2,200  493  300 

Georgia 8,800  r,973  J,2?0 

Idaho 800  229  93 

Illinois 9,200  2,255  3,2I9 

Indiana 4,100  1,190  i,72i 

Iowa 4,800  !,O75  i,5°9 

Kansas 2,700  561  1,115 

Kentucky 2,600  594  r,363 

Louisiana 3,700  i,229  776 

Maine 2,400  656  502 

Maryland 3,300  920  777 

Massachusetts 8,500  2,290  1,889 

Michigan 1,305  x,748 

Minnesota 3,ooo  894  I,I49 

Mississippi 3,300  790  863 

Missouri 3,800  1,164  2,164 

Montana 1,100  227  209 

Nebraska 2,5oo  540  965 

Nevada 600  162  55 

New  Hampshire 2,600  703  301 

New  Jersey 6,200  1,897  I»I8s' 

New  York 17,700  5,705  5,005 

North  Carolina 2,000  738  I,°34 

North  Dakota 1,200  238  184 

Ohio 9,500  2,644  2,899 

Oregon 2,300  634  332 

Pennsylvania 13,700  4,°47  4, 308 

Rhode  Island      1,900  452  284 

South  Dakota 1,100  278  740 

South  Carolina 9,400  1,662  299 

Tennessee 2,700  684  1,224 


132 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR    FOR   CUBA. 


States. 
Texas  .    .    .    .    .    .    .    . 
Utah        .    .    .    .    r  .   . 

Strength. 
5.300 
I   J.OO 

On  National 
Guard. 
1,244 
IQJ. 

Basis 
Population. 
1,692 

Vermont      

I    ^OO 

•24.4. 

i/u 
2  ^"* 

Virginia  
Washington    . 

.....    5,000 
1,700 

I,2O5 
^24. 

1,115 

472 

Lord  Wolseley,  the  commander-in-chief  of  the   British   forces, 
expresses  himself  in   these  words :    "  I   believe   the  quality  of  the 


u.  s.  CRUISER  "ATLANTA." 

American  army  and  navy  is  so  much  superior  to  Spain's  that  the 
Americans  will  have  no  difficulty  in  defeating  Spain's  ships  and  land 
forces,  which  are  their  equals  or  superiors  on  paper  only." 

America's  inventive  genius  is  showing  itself  in  no  more  remark- 
able manner  than  in  the  numberless  devices  for  warfare.  The  five 
thousand  dollar  range-finders,  thirty-five  hundred  dollar  automobile 
torpedoes,  expensive  guns  and  submarine  boats,  dirigible  electric 
torpedoes,  two  million  dollar  battleships,  sixteen-inch  guns  and 


MILITARY   AND    NAVAL   STRENGTH   COMPARED.      133 

harbor  mines  have  put  fighting  upon  a  scientific  footing,  and  the 
means  and  methods  of  warfare  known  as  late  as  our  Civil  War  have 
been  radically  changed.  The  canister  lights  suggested  by  Mr.  Edison 
would  create  a  revolution  in  themselves.  They  can  be  filled  with 
calcium  carbide,  with  a  small  quantity  of  calcium  phosphide  mixed  in, 
and  they  can  be  placed  in  the  water  near  the  patrol  boats  or  fixed  half 
a  mile  away  from  a  mortar.  Acetylene  gas  conies  from  these  canisters, 


THE  SPANISH   BATTLESHIP    "VIZCAYA." 

and  this  would  be  ignited  continuously  by  the  presence  of  inflam- 
mable phosphoretted  hydrogen.  A  large  number  of  cheap  lights 
could  thus  be  placed  over  a  long  distance,  and  as  they  burn  for  a 
long  time,  they  would  effectively  reveal  the  approach  of  hostile 
torpedo-boats,  which  are  greatly  feared.  We  have  recently  seen  an 
account  of  an  invention  which  resembles  bottled  lightning.  The 


134 

electricity  is  stored  in 
condensers  which  are 
said  to  hold  as  much 
as  a  thunderbolt,  and 
nothing  can  stand  in 
the  way  of  its  destruc- 
tive power.  As  a  de- 
stroying agency  this 
is  only  matched  by 
a  newly  patented  elec- 
trical bomb,  which, 
while  flying,  unrolls 
and  carries  along  a 
copper  wire  connected 
with  a  powerful  dy- 
namo, and  when  the 
bomb  alights  it  can 
be  exploded  by  touch- 
ing a  button  at  the 
firing  station.  In  the 
patent  office  Mr. 
Seeley  has  invented 
an  electrical  gun 
which  will  throw  a 
continuous  stream  of 
projectiles  containing 
high  explosives  over 
a  range  of  six  miles. 
But  none  of  these 
will  prove  more  de- 
structive than  Cap- 
tain Zalinski's  device 
consisting  of  a  flying 
torpedo  fitted  with  a 
dry  battery,  which, 
when  thrown  by  the 
side  of  an  enemy's 
ship,  is  energized  and 


MILITARY   AND    NAVAL   STRENGTH    COMPARED.       13 

exploded  by  the  water,  and  anything  in  the  neighborhood  is  blown  into 
atoms.  Modern  warfare  has  become  largely  a  matter  of  machinery,  and 
as,  in  ingenuity  and  inventiveness,  American  mechanics,  engineers  and 
manufacturers  have  no  equals  in  Europe,  in  a  comparatively  short 
time  the  United  States  might  successfully  undertake  to  cope  with 
several  of  the  leading  powers  of  Europe  combined.  Our  dynamite 
cruiser,  the  "  Vesuvius,"  in  a  naval  combat  would  prove  more  dan- 


THE  SPANISH  WARSHIP    "  REINA   MERCEDES." 

gerous  than  a  half  dozen  of  the  greatest  battleships  of  the  European 
navies. 

With  her  mediaeval  ideas,  it  is  next  to  impossible  for  Spain  to  com- 
prehend that,  as  war  is  waged  to-day,  a  country  like  America,  capable 
of  supplying  the  world  with  electrical  motors,  mining  machinery 
and  engines  of  all  kinds,  would  necessarily  be  a  formidable  foe 
against  any  or  all  of  the  powers.  The  question  of  speed  is  an  im- 
portant one  in  naval  warfare  ;  and  one  that  is  just  now  attracting 
much  attention.  When  Nelson  pursued  the  French  fleet  over  seven 
thousand  miles  at  sea  in  1805,  his  ships  averaged  only  ninety-three 
miles  a  day  or  less  than  four  knots  an  hour.  But  steam  has  changed 


136 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


all  this ;  and  over  these  same  waters  which  the  English  admiral 
passed  and  repassed  so  impatiently  in  the  first  decade  of  this  century, 
the  United  States  cruiser  "Columbia"  swept,  in  the  last  decade  of 
this  century,  at  a  speed  of  18.41  knots  per  hour,  or  four  and  three- 
quarter  times  faster  than  the  brave  sailors  who  did  their  deadly  work 
at  Trafalgar.  With  its  magnificent  equipment  of  men  and  machinery, 
and  its  power  to  add  largely  to  both,  America  will  give  a  good 
account  of  herself  on  land  or  at  sea,  whatever  foe  may  face  her. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


Cuba's  Heroes, 


(13?) 


CHAPTER  VI. 

CUBA'S    HEROES. 

Brave,  honest  and  patriotic  men — Maximo  Gomez — A  manly  proclamation — 
Masterly  tactics — Antonio  Maceo — His  brother  Jose — Two  daring  soldiers — 
A  magnanimous  proposal — Calexto  Garcia — Nestor  Aranguren — A  Cuban 
Centurion — Brilliant  capture  of  a  train — President  Masso  and  his  cabinet — 
Once  a  prisoner  in  Morro  Castle — Cisneros  ex-President — His  address  to 
the  Junta. 

JITH  a  little  strip  of  land  as  a  battle  field,  Cuba  has  developed 
during  her  stormy  history,  so  singularly  checkered  by  glory 
and  gloom,  a  number  of  heroes,  whose  names  will  live  in 
history  ;  and  at  no  time  have  her  sons  fought  more  bravely  for 

independence  than  during  these  last  three  years  of  ceaseless  warfare. 
One  of  Cuba's  greatest  captains 

is  Maximo  Gomez,  who  has  proven 

himself   to   be  a  genius   in   military 

affairs,  both  in  the  war  of  1868-78, 

and  in  the  present  one.     The  Spanish 

accused   him  of    being  a  traitor  and 

selling    out     to    them  when  Campos 

acted    as  peacemaker  at  Zanjon  ;  but 

his  simple  life  on  a  little  farm  in  San 

Domingo,  where  all  the  members  of 

his  family  were  obliged  to  work  hard 

for  a  livelihood,   and  the  manner  in 

which    he   again     entered    into    war 

when    his   island    home   needed    his 

services,     disprove    the    slander.     A 

complete  vindication  of  his  character 

is  found  in  a  proclamation  issued  by 

him  in  December,  1895,  in  which  he 

outlined  his  policy  and  defended  his 

character.       His  opening    words  are 

these:        "When,     at     seventy-two 


GENERAL   MAXIMO   GOMEZ, 


years  of  age,   I  decided   to  abandon 


The  veteran  leader  of  the  Cuban  patriots 


in  the  field. 


(139) 


1 4o 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


my  large  family,  in  whose  company  I  was  living  calmly  and  happily;  when,, 
in  a  word,  I  was  embarking  myself  on  the  coast  of  San  Domingo,  to  come 
back  to  my  idolized  Cuba,  I  could  not  hide  the  emotions  that  took  posses- 
sion of  me,  nor  could  I  make  allusions  to  the  magnitude  of  the  colossal 
enterprise  that  I  was  about  to  undertake.  Born,  educated,  and  having 
spent  the  greater  part  of  my  existence  on  the  field  of  battle,  it  was  not 
possible  for  me  to  ignore  the  question  as  to  what  kind  of  an  enemy  I  had 
to  fight  in  order  to  fulfill  what  I  had  promised  on  my  word  of  honor,  that 
if  I  did  not  die,  I  would  have  Cuba  as  soon  as  possible  among  the  free 
nations."  In  referring  to  the  accusation  of  the  Autonomistic  party,  that 
he  was  merely  an  adventurer,  he  wrote  :  ' '  Ah  !  The  men  who  fought 


Gen.  Gomez,  T.  Estrada  Palma, 

Prest.  S.  G.  Cisueros. 

for  half  a  score  of  years  to  give  them  a  nation,  honor  and  liberty, 
adventurers  ?  The  one  who  gained  with  his  own  blood  the  first  rank  in 
that  army  which  filled  the  world  with  admiration,  an  adventurer?  The 
one  who  abandoned  his  own  happy  land  without  accepting  the  rich  booty 
to  which  the  shameful  peace  of  the  Zanjon  invited  him,  an  adventurer? 
The  one  who  could  have  offered  as  an  excuse  for  his  non-return  his  many 
years  and  the  consequent  fatigue  ;  he  who  abandons  everything  and  flies 
to  occupy  the  place  that  his  own  brothers  had  reserved  for  him  ?  Ah  !  he 
cannot  be  an  adventurer,  who,  loaded  with  years  and  troubles,  remembers 
still  as  if  it  were  his  own,  the  vow  made  by  Cespedes  and  Agramonte, 
twenty-seven  years  ago,  '  to  vanquish  or  to  die.'  "  After  speaking  of  his 
confidence  in  the  sympathy  of  those  who  believe  in  liberty,  and  after 
declaring  that  his  soul  grows  sad  as  he  thinks  of  the  folly  of  shame  of 


CUBA'S  HEROES. 


141 


Spain  in  carrying  on  a  cruel  and  useless  war,  he  concludes  with  these 
eloquent  words  :  ; '  What  will  be  the  future  of  these  unhappy  people  if 
the  Spanish  are  triumphant  ?  The  rural  elements  being  absolutely 
destroyed,  their  cities  having  been  the  scene  of  the  most  frightful  misery  ; 
with  the  debt  of  the  past  war  and  that  of  the  present,  which  will  amount 
to  as  much  as  $500,000,000  ;  having  to  maintain  an  army  of  50,000  men, 
in  order  to  annihilate  the  Cuban  race  so  that  thev  will  not  think  of 


A  VISIT  TO  THE  GOVERNOR   OF  MATANZAS. 

The  American  Congressmen  and  Relief  Workers  are  shown  waiting  in 
the  Governor's  Reception  Room. 

repeating  the  disaster,  every  one  who  is  able  to  do  so  will  emigrate  before 
so  much  misfortune  ;  and  there  remains  no  solution  but  to  turn  their  eyes 
toward  the  revolution,  thus  after  a  few  years  making  Cuba,  which  is  a 
young  and  rich  people,  the  most  enviable  country  on  earth.  And  we  will 
conquer  and  be  free,  cost  what  it  may,  or  happen  what  will,  and  though 
we  have  to  raise  a  hospital  in  each  corner  and  a  tomb  in  each  home." 
In  disgust  General  Weyler  said  about  Gomez  :  "I  have  never  been  able 


I42 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


to  get  up  with  him."  This  remark  was  not  only  an  admission  of  failure 
on  the  part  of  the  Spanish  general,  but  it  indicates  the  character  of  the 
campaign  that  the  Cuban  Commander-in-Chief  has  been  conducting. 
Occupying  the  hill-locked  valleys  and  the  mountain  passes,  Gomez  and 
his  brave  men  have  been  engaged  in  the  only  methods  of  war  that  was 
possible  for  them  to  wage.  The  Spanish  soldiers  have  been  puzzled  over 
and  over  again  by  the  masterly  circular  movements  of  the  Cubans  ;  and 
knowing  the  country  so  well,  they  have  availed  themselves  to  the  fullest 
extent  of  the  advantages  presented  by  the  nature  of  the  ground. 

In    March,    1895,    Antonio   Maceo  and  his  brother  Jose,  with  Flor 
Crombet  and  other  comrades,   left  Costa  Rica  and,  after  great  difficulty, 


FONS  Y   SXKRUNO, 

Secretary  of  Treasury. 


MENDEZ    CAPOLE, 

Vice- President. 


landed  near  Baracoa,  on  the  last  day  of  the  month.  While  marching 
toward  the  interior  of  the  island,  Flor  Crombet  was  killed  and  others 
were  taken  prisoners  by  detachments  of  regulars,  but  the  Maceos,  with  a 
few  men,  succeeded  in  reaching  the  band  of  Periquito  Perez,  about 
Guantanamo,  and  then  Antonio  Maceo  took  command  of  the  revolution- 
ary army  in  the  Oriental  province.  The  Maceos  are  mulattoes,  full 
brothers,  and  they  resemble  each  other  so  closely  that,  were  it  not  for  the 
full  beard  worn  by  Jose,  it  would  be  hard  to  distinguish  one  from  the 


CUBA'S  HEROES.  143 

other.  Antonio  is  the  more  distinguished  of  the  two;  he  is  a  brilliant 
cavalry  leader,  and  next  to  Maximo  Gomez  he  deserves  the  greatest  credit 
for  the  successful  conduct  of  the  present  war.  When  mounted  on  his  fine 
horse  and  having  his  flashing  machete  in  his  uplifted  hand,  he  dashes 
into  battle,  his  presence  is  an  inspiration  to  the  Cuban  soldiers  and  a 
terror  to  the  enemy.  As  a  leader  of  skirmishers,  Antonio  Maceo  was 
unsurpassed.  After  every  precaution  was  taken  by  the  Spanish  soldiers 
to  prevent  the  destructive  inroads  of  the  insurgents,  the  Maceos  eluded 
the  regular  troops  repeatedly, 
and  would  appear  where  they  I 
were  least  expected.  While 
Maceo  was  a  hard  fighter,  he 
showed  his  kindly  consideration 
for  the  wounded  in  this  letter  thai 
was  addressed  to  General  Mar- 
tinez Campos  after  a  blood\ 
encounter: 

"  Dear  Sir:  Anxious  to  give 
careful  and  efficient  attendance 
to  the  wounded  Spanish  soldiers 
that  your  troops  left  behind  or 
the  battlefield,  I  have  ordered 

^    j.  A*.         u      1     j        J   •      ^r.     -L.  DR-  CASTILLO, 

that  they  be  lodged  in  the  houses  Cuban  Surgeon  ^^ 

of    Cuban     families     that     live 

nearest    to    the  battle-grounds,   until  you    send    for    them.      With   my 
assurance  that  the  forces  you  may  send  to  escort  them    back  will   not 
meet  any  hostile  demonstrations  from  my  soldiers. ' ' 
"  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  sir, 

"  Yours  respectfully, 

' '  ANTONIO  MACEO.  ' ' 

When,  early  after  the  insurrection  broke  out  in  Cuba  three  years 
ago,  General  Calixto  Garcia  joined  the  Cuban  forces,  he  was  looked  upon 
as  an  important  accession  to  the  patriotic  cause.  Across  his  forehead 
he  has  a  scar  that  shows  experience  in  hand  to  hand  sabre  fighting; 
and  in  this,  as  in  previous  struggles,  he  has  proven  himself  to  be  a  soldier 
of  courage  and  capacity. 

Nestor  Aranguren  has  been  called  the  Cuban  Marion.  For  months 
he  kept  Havana  and  the  Matanzas  province  in  a  state  of  intense  excite- 
ment by  his  daring  raids,  and  with  his  little  band  of  one  hundred  men, 


144 


COLUMBIA  S    WAR   FOR  CUBA. 


nearly  all  of  whom  were  members  of  the  best  Cuban  families  and  gradu- 
ates of  the  University  of  Havana,  he  held  in  check  the  Spanish  forces  and 
gave  impetus  to  the  cause  of  liberty.  One  of  his  boldest  and  most 
successful  adventures  was  the  capture  of  a  train  at  the  entrance  to  the 
city  of  Havana,  in  January,  1896.  All  the  Cuban  passengers  were 
liberated  unharmed;  ten  Spanish  officers  were  bound  and  carried  away  by 
the  captors;  two  Cubans,  who  were  fighting  in  the  Spanish  army  against 
their  native  land,  were  hung  as  traitors  by  Aranguren's  orders,  and  the 
officers  were  returned  safely  to  Havana.  The  reported  address  of  this 
__^____  dashing  young  leader  to  his 

prisoners  is  so  characteristic  that 
we  give  a  part  of  it: 

''You  are  our  enemies," 
he  continued,  '  but  I  do  not  con- 
sider you  mortal  enemies.  You 
are  sent  to  fight  for  Spain  in 
Morocco,  the  Philippines,  and  in 
Cuba,  and  I  do  not  see  very  well 
how  you  could  get  out  of  it. ' 

' '  Then  we  saw  that  we  were 
not  to  be  killed;  but  among  the 
captured  officers  were  two 
Cubans — Barrios  and  Betan- 
court.  To  the  former  the  chief 
turned  and  said  : 

"  'You  are  a  Cuban,  and  you  are  murdering  your  brothers  for  pay. 
You  will  surely  die. ' 

"  He  turned  to  Betancourt  and  said:  '  You  are  a  Cuban,  too,  and  you 
and  I  were  schoolmates.  I  will  not  kill  you,  but  I  am  ashamed  to  find 
you  here.' 

"A  detachment  then  filed  away  from  the  main  body,  carrying  with 
them  Barrios  and  the  switchman,  Misa,  against  whom  the  insurgents  said 
they  had  an  old  grudge,  as  he  had  often  informed  against  them.  Barrios 
heard  his  sentence  bravely  and  in  silence.  As  he  was  carried  away, 
Aranguren  followed  him  with  a  look  of  withering  contempt. 

"  '  That  Cuban  must  die,'  he  said.  '  I  must  rid  my  country  of  such 
an  unnatural  son.  Thank  God  there  are  few  such  traitors  !  but  I  will  not 
compel  you  gentlemen  to  assist  at  a  spectacle  which  could  not  but  be  painful. ' 
"  The  hanging  took  place  an  hour  later  in  Campo  Florido.  But  the 
only  details  we  have  are  the  copies  of  the  inscriptions  over  the  bodies  of 
the  victims.  That  over  Lieutenant  Barrios  read: 


GENERAL  ROLOFF. 


CUBA'S  HEROES. 


' '  '  Bernardo  Barrios,  Cubano.  Ados  como  este  son  sensibles  pero 
necesarios  paro  cjemplo  de  tanto  traidor.' 

"  Over  the  head  of  Misa,  the  switchman,  was  written: 

"  ' Muerto  par  delator.' 

"  We  then  rode  on  until  eleven  o'clock,  when  we  breakfasted.  The 
insurgents'  breakfast  was  not  as  good  as  their  cigars,  but  Aranguren  had 
some  roast  pig,  cooked,  as  he  said,  laughingly,  for  his  Spanish  guests. 
We  then  rode  on  again  until  about  three  o'clock,  when  we  were  within 
two  leagues  of  the  Spanish  lines. 

"  'Here,'    said  Aranguren,    'our  ways  part.     If  I   accompany  you 
farther  we  will  only  attract  the  attention  of  your  sharpshooters,  and  per- 
haps your  own  men  will  not  treat  you  as  well  as  we  have.     I  shall  send, 
however,  a  small  detachment  after  you 
to  watch   that   no   harm  comes  to  you 
from  the  rear.'  ' 

Masso,  the  president  of  what  is 
known  as  the  Republic  of  Cuba,  is  a 
unique  personage  ;  and  is  hailed  by  his 
followers  as  the  Father  of  his  Country. 
The  following  are  the  names  of  the 
cabinet  of  the  provisional  government  of 
the  Cuban  Republic  :  Andres  Mareno 
de  la  Torre,  Secretary  of  State  ;  Ernesto 
Fous,  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  ;  Jose 
B.  Aleman,  Secretary  of  War  ;  Manuel 
Ramon  Silva,  Secretary  of  the  Interior; 
and  Bartolome  Masso  and  Domingo 
Mendez  Capote  are  the  President  and 
the  Vice-President.  As  the  President  is 
a  character  just  now  of  increasing  in- 
terest, we  present  a  pen-picture  of  him 
and  his  heroic  career  : 

No  potentate  or  ruler  in  all  the 
world  occupies  so  peculiar  a  position 
as  Bartolome  Masso.  At  the  age  of  sixty-three,  after  a  lifetime  of  bat- 
tling for  the  cause  of  his  native  country,  he  has  been  elected  President  of 
the  Republic  of  Cuba  and  has  been  hailed  as  the  Father  of  his  Country. 

Probably  there  has  never  been  an  election  held  under  similar  circum- 
stances. The  details  are  meagre  in  the  extreme.  Although  the  Cuban 
Assembly  convened  somewhere  in  the  mountain  fastnesses  of  the 


RAM6N   SILVA, 

Secretary  of  Interior. 


I46 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


Camaguey  district  on  September  2,  it  was  not  until  quite  recently  that  the 
result  of  the  election  was  definitely  known.  The  Cuban  Junta  of  New 
York  has  been  informed  at  various  times  that  Masso  and  Mendez  Capote 
had  been  elected.  The  reports  were  conflicting. 

But  now  it  is  known  beyond  the  peradventure  of  a  doubt  that  in  that 
recent  conclave,  guarded  from  the  Spanish  forces  by  every  precaution 
known  to  Cuban  warfare,  Bartolome  Masso  became  the  ruler  of  a  Republic 
whose  government  is  chaos,  whose  warrior  statesmen  are  hunted  through 
their  own  domains  like  fugitives — a  republic  in  name  only. 

In  spite  of  this  state  of  affairs  the  Cuban  sympathizers  are  rejoicing. 
In  the  election  of  Masso  they  see  a  new  ray  of  hope.     Throughout  his 
entire  life  he  has  been  unalterably  opposed  to  any  legislation  other  than 
that  tending  toward  the  absolute  independ- 
ence of  Cuba.     He  is  a  scholar  as  well  as 
a  soldier  and  a  man    who   is  said    to  hold 
honor  above   all  else  in  life. 

The   Man's   Integrity. 

His  integrity  has  never  been  questioned. 
An  illustration  of  this  occurred  just  pre- 
vious to  the  outbreaking  of  the  present 
war,  when  he  discounted  all  his  outstanding 
I  obligations,  amounting  to  many  thousands 
I  of  dollars.  To  those  of  his  creditors  who 
TJj  would  ask  him  the  reason  for  settling  all 
his  debts  prematurely  he  would  remark  : 
' '  Suppose  the  rumors  which  are  rife  that 
there  is  to  be  another  revolution  in  Cuba 
are  well  grounded.  It  is  better  for  me  to 
pay  while  I  have  the  means  than  to  leave 
matters  to  be  settled  when  it  may  be  im- 
possible for  me  to  do  so. "  He  undoubtedly 
knew  what  he  was  talking  about,  for  as 
soon  as  war  broke  out  in  order  to  drive  the  Spaniards  from  his  property 
he  set  fire  to  his  estates. 

While  Masso  is  not  known  to  favor  the  political  annexation  of  Cuba 
to  the  United  States,  he  has  never  spoken  against  it,  and  is  a  decidedly 
stanch  supporter  of  the  closest  mercantile  relations  between  the  two 
countries.  He  is  credited  with  holding  the  views  that  if  Cuban  inde- 
pendence is  accomplished  American  capital  and  enterprise  will  make  the 
island  of  Cuba  the  richest  and  most  productive  country  in  the  world. 


MORENO   LA   CORRE, 

Secretary  Foreign  Affairs. 


CUBA'S  HEROES. 


147 


Early   Political  Writings. 

Masso  was  born  in  Manzanillo,  Cuba.  Both  his  father,  Bartolome 
Masso,  and  his  mother,  Antonia  Marquez,  were  wealthy  persons  of  high 
social  standing.  Masso  studied  science  and  letters,  and  after  being 
graduated  from  the  Havana  University,  was  sent  by  his  father  on  a  tour 
through  Europe.  On  returning  to  Cuba  he  engaged  in  literary  and 
newspaper  work.  His  political  writings  at  once  attracted  attention,  and 
made  him  very  unpopular  with  the  Spanish  authorities  in  Cuba. 

When  the  ten  years'  war  broke  out  in  Cuba  in  1868,  Masso,  then  at 
Manzanillo,  joined  the  leader  of  that  revolution,  Carlos  M.  de  Cespedes, 
at  La  Demajagua.  Masso,  who  had  made  a  special  study  of  military 
affairs,  was  placed  in  c'.iarge  of  the  first  body  of  Cuban  troops  mustered 
by  President  Carlos  M.  de 
Cespedes,  and  his  command 
was  the  first  to  engage  the 
Spanish  troops  in  a  fight  at 
Sabana  de  San  Pedro,  three 
miles  from  the  historical 
town  of  Yara. 

Masso  fought  through- 
out the  ten  years'  war  and 
attained  the  rank  of  colonel. 
When  in  1878  the  Cubans, 
accepting  in  good  faith  the 
promises  of  Spain  to  grant 
Cuba  complete  home  rule, 
provided  they  should  sur- 
render their  arms,  Masso 
protested,  and  was,  with  General  Maceo.  one  of  the  last  to  leave  the 
field.  He  continued  to  fight  the  Spanish  troops  even  after  the  treaty  of 
Zanjon  had  been  signed.  Owing  more  to  the  entreaties  of  his  friends 
than  to  his  faith  in  the  Spanish  promises,  he  finally  consented  to 
leave  the  field. 


GENEKAL  ALEMAN, 
Secretary  of  War. 


Thrown   Into   Prison. 

The  non-fulfillment  by  Spain  of  the  preliminary  stipulation  of  the 
treaty  of  peace  caused  another  uprising  to  take  place  six  months  after 
the  termination  of  the  ten  years'  war.  Masso,  who  had  been  constantly 
hinting  at  Spanish  bad  faith,  was  thrown  into  prison  at  the  first  signs  of 


148 


COLUMBIA'S    WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


an  uprising.  After  being  kept  for  some  time  in  close  confinement  at 
Morro  Castle,  Santiago  de  Cuba,  he  was  deported  to  Spain  by  order  of 
General  Polavieja. 

On  being  released,  in  1880,  he  returned  to  Cuba  and  engaged  in  sugar 
planting.  His  thrift  and  success  in  business  soori  enabled  him  to  build 
up  his  fortune,  which  had  been  nearly  ruined  by  the  long  war. 

After  seventeen  years  spent  in  claiming  from  Spain  the  fulfillment  of 
her  promises  made  at  Zanjon,  whereby  the  ten  years'  war  was 
ended,  the  Cubans  resolved  to  take  up  arms  again,  not  to  compel  Spain  to 
keep  her  word,  but  in  order  to  sever  all  connection  between  Cuba  and  the 
mother  country. 


ARMED    ESCORT   ON    A    REIJEF   TRAIN   TO   MATANZAS. 


Masso,  who  had  been  the  trusted  agent  of  the  Cuban  Revolutionary 
Committee  during  the  time  Cubans  were  preparing  for  the  present  revolu- 
tion, was  the  first  man  to  raise  the  standard  of  freedom.  On  February  24, 
1895,  at  the  head  of  a  handful  of  men,  at  his  estate  La  Jaquita,  near 
Manzanillo,  he  proclaimed  the  independence  of  Cuba  from  Spain. 

The  prestige  of  Masso's  name  lent  great  importance  to  the  uprising 
from  the  start.  The  Spanish  government  sent  several  delegations  to 
confer  with  Masso,  first  to  induce  him  to  return  to  town,  afterward,  to 
offer  him  the  greatest  assurances  that  home  rule  would  be  granted  to  Cuba. 


CUBA'S   HEROES. 


149 


Our  sketch  of  Cuban  heroes  would  be  quite  imperfect,  did  we  not 
make  mention  of  Senor  Salvador  Cisneros,  whose  loyalty  to  the  cause  of 
Cuba's  independence  and  whose  practical  common  sense,  excellent  judg- 
ment and  intellectual  force  have  not  only  won  for  him  the  admiration  of 
his  followers  and  others,  but  whose  methods  of  procedure  under  most 
trying  circumstances,  and  whose  sincerity  of  character  have  added  strength 
to  the  cause  for  which  he  sacrificed  so  much. 

We  can  not  better  illustrate  the  spirit  of  the  man,  than  by  giving  the 
proclamation  which,  as  President  of  Cuba,  he  sent  to  the  Junta  in  New 
York,  January,  1896. 

' '  Nothing  is  more  difficult  at  the  outset  of  an  enterprise  than  to 
maintain  it  uniformly  deserving  the  world's  approval.  The  people  of 


A  GROUP  OF  STAFF  OFFICERS  OF  THE  CUBAN  ARMY. 


Cuba  are  now  face  to  face  with  such  a  difficulty.  They  were  born  under 
the  rule  of  a  nation  universally  regarded  as  tyrannical  and  ambitious. 
They  have  never  learned  the  lesson  of  governing  themselves.  Now,  in 
their  struggle  for  independence,  they  have  not  only  to  n^aintain  the  stress 
of  warfare,  but  also  to  learn  how  to  govern  themselves.  |j,Being  a  people 
of  advanced  ideas,  they  naturally  desire  a  democratic  government,  created 
of  the  people,  by  the  people  and  for  the  people.  The  people  are  the 
only  rulers.  Their  wishes  are  above  those  of  the  men  composing  the 


150 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR   FOR  CUBA. 


government,  and  the  latter  must  obey  the  constitution    adopted  by  the 
assembly  of  representatives. 

"Those  who  now  form  the  provisional  government  of  the  new7  republic, 
actuated  by  true  patriotism,  accept  this  obligation.  They  know  that  to 
establish  a  nation  worthy  of  this  age,  and  wrorthy  of  the  heroic  struggle 
of  1868,  the  people  must  be  the  only  sovereign,  and  that  such  is  the  desire 
of  all  Cubans.  For  this  reason,  the  provisional  government,  obedient  to 
the  constitution,  and  actuated  by  the  exactions  of  common  humanity,  is 
compelled  to  permit  a  few  exceptions  to  our  last  orders,  which  exceptions 
we  shall  nowr  explain,  in  order  that  our  countrymen,  our  enemies  and  the 
world  at  large  may  know  the  honesty  of  our  course. 


ENCAMPMENT  OF   A   REGIMENT  OF   CUBAN  TROOPS. 

"The  revolution,  as  is  the  case  with  all  revolutions  arising  from 
popular  indignation,  had  at  its  inception  no  other  rulers  than  those  dictated 
by  the  few  military  chiefs  then  in  arms.  A  uniform  method  of  procedure 
was  impossible,  on  account  of  the  different  lines  of  action  adopted  by 
each  province  in  rebellion.  Among  the  dispensations  of  some  of  these 
chiefs  are  the  special  permissions  they  gave  to  a  few  sugar  planters  to 
continue  grinding  this  }rear.  To-day  the  revolution  and  its  government 
permits  no  planters  to  grind,  but  they  respect  the  dispensation  above 
referred  to  in  accordance  with  article  21  of  our  constitution,  which  reads: 
'All  the  debts  and  promises  of  the  military  chiefs,  from  the  beginning  of 


CUBA'S   HEROES.  151 

this  war,  to  the  time  in  which  this  constitution  is  adopted,  shall  be 
respected  as  laws  by  the  provisional  government. ' 

"The  government  obeys  the  constitution,  and  this,  then,  is  the  only 
reason  why  some  sugar  estates  are  allowed  to  work  during  the  present 
season;  the  permission  is  not,  as  our  enemies  say,  the  result  of  force  of 
arms.  The  proprietors  of  these  exempted  estates  have  paid  war  contribu- 
tions to  our  military  chiefs,  and  upon  no  other  estates  is  work  possible. 
In  the  beginning,  when  the  revolution  had  no  other  government  than  that 
of  the  military  chiefs,  the  commander-in-chief  prohibited  the  importation 
of  food  by  towns  occupied  by  the  enemy.  Now  the  provisional  govern- 
ment, considering  that  families  of  non-combatants  might  become  the 
victims  of  such  a  measure,  has  abolished  it,  and  we  allow  the  entrance 
into  Spanish  towns  of  some  articles  of  commerce,  upon  payment  of  an 
import  duty. 

"Another  measure  adopted  at  the  beginning  of  the  revolution,  and 
now  accepted  by  us,  is  that  permitting  the  burning  of  buildings  used  by 
the  enemy  as  forts.  It  is  false  that  we  are  inspired  in  this  by  personal 
feelings  of  revenge,  as  the  Spanish  government  says  we  are.  It  is  only  a 
war  measure.  We  are  uniformly  humane.  We  set  Spanish  prisoners  free, 
and  despite  the  sanguinary  conduct  of  the  enemy  towards  peaceful  people 
and  Cuban  prisoners,  we  shall  not  retaliate. 

' '  Nor  do  we  accept  bandits  in  our  ranks.  Those  bands  which  were 
in  existence  before  the  revolution  began,  and  came  to  us  volunteering  to 
fight  for  Cuban  liberty,  we  have  accepted,  and  will  permit  to  remain 
with  us  as  long  as  their  conduct  is  honorable.  Others  who  intended  to 
dishonor  the  name  of  Cuba's  soldiery,  were  promptly -punished.  There 
are  no  bandits  to-day  in  the  Cuban  camps,  as  there  were  in  Cuba  in  the 
days  of  Spanish  rule. 

"To  be  known,  therefore,  to  all  Cubans,  to  the  enemy,  and  to  the 
world  at  large,  that  a  few  sugar  estates  are  grinding  their  crops  at  present 
because  we  respect  their  contracts  with  our  military  chiefs,  and  because 
they  pay  us  high  taxes.  Thus  we  prove  our  strength,  and  if,  unhappily, 
our  forces,  to-day  victorious,  should  ultimately  be  vanquished,  we  shall 
have  the  courage  to  destroy  all  sugar  estates  rather  than  permit  the 
continuance  of  Spanish  tyranny  in  Cuba.  Let  Cuba  perish  if  she  cannot 
obtain  her  independence. ' ' 


CHAPTER  VII. 


The  Cuba  Libre  Movement, 


(153) 


CHAPTER    VII. 

THE   CUBA  LIBRE  MOVEMENT. 

Justified  by  the  American  Declaration  of  Independence — Conditions  of  righteous 
insurrection  fulfilled — Suppression  of  Cuban  representation  in  the  Cortes — 
The  captain-general  a  dictator — Petitions  presented  at  Madrid — A  plan  of 
government  and  pacification  formulated — Spain's  arrogant  answer — Cuba 
saddled  with  cost  of  suppressing  rebellions — Pensions  for  retired  Spanish 
officials— Causes  of  commercial  ruin — Present  situation  in  free  Cuba. 

JUR  Declaration  of  Independence  declares  ' '  that  when  a  long 
train  of  abuses  and  usurpations  evinces  a  design  to  reduce 
the  people  under  absolute  despotism,  it  is  their  right,  it  is 
their  duty,  to  throw  off  such  government."  Exactly  these 
words  can  be  adopted  by  Cuba  in  justification  of  its  present  course. 
Where  is  there  a  country  that  has  been  more  cruel  and  harassing  than 
Spain  has  been  in  colonial  dealings ;  and  where  is  there  a  colony 
that  has  been  more  patient  and  long-suffering  than  Cuba  ?  Early  in 
this  century  patriots  who  had  studied  the  question  on  the  ground, 
and  who,  like  Presbyter  Caballero  and  Don  Francisco  Arango,  were 
loyal  to  Spain,  called  the  attention  of  the  home  government  to  the 
evils  that  were  being  enacted  in  the  Colony  and  suggested  necessary 
remedies  ;  but  these  reports  made  no  impression  on  a  government  that 
was  determined  to  pursue  its  narrow,  selfish  policy.  In  1837  the  small 
representation  of  Cuba  in  the  Cortes,  at  Madrid,  was  suppressed  ;  and 
into  the  hands  of  a  captain-general,  living  in  Havana,  were  given  the 
life  and  property  of  a  peaceful  and  defenceless  people.  After  seeing  her 
sons  exiled,  crushed  by  heavy  taxation,  denied  all  the  rights  of  citizen- 
ship, unlawfully  prosecuted  and  hung  on  the  scaffold  because  they  dared 
to  complain  against  social,  commercial  and  political  wrongs,  Cuba  in  its 
despair  arose  in  insurrection  in  1850,  1851,  1855,  1868,  1879,  1885 
and  is  now,  let  us  hope,  engaged  in  an  effort  that  will  result  in  breaking 
asunder  forever  the  chains  of  Spanish  thraldom.  The  world  should 
know  that  Cuba  exhausted  all  resources  to  induce  Spain  to  cease  her 
unjust  measures  before  taking  up  arms. 

Before  the   struggle   of    1868-78,   petitions  were   addressed    to   the 
power  at  Madrid,  asking  for  redress  for   wrongs  committed  by  Spanish 

(155) 


156  COLUMBIA'S   WAR    FOR    CUBA. 

officials  at  Havana,  and  a  complete  plan  of  government  which  met  all 
requirements  and  satisfied  the  aspirations  of  the  people  was  presented  ; 
but  Spain  answered  by  increasing  the  severities  of  her  colonial  policy. 
After  the  terrible  ten  year  war  in  which  Spain  lost  200,000  men  and 
spent  $700,000,000,  instead  of  learning  wisdom  by  experience,  she 
excluded  every  native  Cuban  from  office  and  continued  her  former 
barbarous  treatment  of  a  people  to  whom  she  had  promised  desired 
reforms.  From  a  manifesto  sent  by  the  Cuban  Revolutionary  Party  to 
the  people  of  the  United  States,  it  is  shown  that  the  number  of  voters 
were  reduced  by  an  electoral  law  so  as  always  to  give  a  majority  to  the 
Spaniards,  that  a  Permanent  Commission  of  Provincial  Deputations  was 
fa  appointed,  composed  of  those  in  sym- 

pathy with  the  Madrid  government, 
to  decide  all  controversies  that  might 
arise  as  to  electors,  and  thus  suppress 
everything  like  a  popular  voice  in  any 
of  the  public  affairs,  that  Cubans  were 
deprived  of  representation  in  local  cor- 
porations to  which  they  were  entitled 
and  that  every  avenue  through  which 
redress  could  be  obtained  has  been 
closed.  It  is  shown  that  Spain  com- 
mits official  spoliation  through  "  its 

fiscal  regime,  its  commercial  regime  and  its  bureaucratic  regime. " 
After  the  war  of  1878,  although  two- thirds  of  the  island  was  in 
ruins,  the  government  at  Madrid  was  bent  on  making  Cuba  pay  the 
cost  of  the  war  ;  and  consequently  the  first  budget  brought  in  after 
that  struggle  for  1878  to  1879  was  $46,594,000,  the  large  part  of 
which  was  to  be  borne  by  the  island,  crushed  by  Spanish  tyranny.  In 
the  words  of  the  manifesto: 

"As  a  consequence  of  such  a  reckless  and  senseless  financial  course, 
the  debt  of  Cuba  has  been  increased  to  a  fabulous  sum.  In  1868  we 
owed  $25,000,000.  When  the  present  war  broke  out  our  debt,  it  was 
calculated,  reached  the  net  sum  of  $190,000,000.  On  the  3ist  of  July 
of  the  current  year,  the  Island  of  Cuba  was  reckoned  to  owe  $295,707,264 
in  bulk.  Considering  its  population,  the  debt  of  Cuba  exceeds  that 
of  all  the  other  American  countries,  including  the  United  States.  The 
interest  on  this  debt  imposes  a  burden  of  $9.79  on  each  inhabitant.  The 
French  people,  the  most  overburdened  in  this  respect,  owe  only  $6.30  per 
inhabitant. 


THE  CUBA   LIBRE   MOVEMENT.  157 

"  This  enormous  debt,  contracted  and  saddled  upon  the  country  with- 
out its  knowledge;  this  heavy  load  that  grinds  it  and  does  not  permit  its 
people  to  capitalize  their  income,  to  foster  its  improvements,  or  even  to 
entertain  its  industries,  constitutes  one  of  the  most  iniquitous  forms  of 
spoliation  the  island  has  to  bear.  In  it  are  included  a  debt  of  Spain  to 
the  United  States;  the  expenses  incurred  by  Spain  when  she  occupied  San 
Domingo;  those  for  the  invasion  of  Mexico  in  alliance  with  France  and 
England;  the  expenditures  for  her  hostilities  against  Peru;  the  money 
advanced  to  the  Spanish  treasury  during  its  recent  Carlist  wars;  and  all 


THE   HARBOR    OF   SANTIAGO    DE   CUBA. 

that  Spain  has  spent  to  uphold  its  domination  in  Cuba  and  to  cover  the 
lavish  expenditures  of  its  administration  since  1868.  Not  a  cent  of  this 
enormous  sum  has  been  spent  in  Cuba  to  advance  the  work  of  improve- 
ment and  civilization.  It  has  not  contributed  to  build  a  single  kilometre 
•of  highway  or  of  railroad,  nor  to  erect  a  single  lighthouse,  or  deepen  a 
single  port;  it  has  not  built  one  asylum  or  opened  one  public  school. 
Such  a  heavy  burden  has  been  left  to  the  future  generations,  without  a 
single  compensation  or  benefit. 

"  But  the  naked  figures  of  the  Cuban  budgets  and  of  the  Cuban  debt 
tell  very  little  in  regard  to  their  true  importance   and  signification    as 


158  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

machines  to  squeeze  out  the  substance  of  a  people's  labor.     It  is  necessary 
to  examine  closer  the  details  of  these  accounts  and  expenditures. 

"Those  of  Cuba,  according  to  the  last  budgets  or  appropriations, 
amount  to  $26,411,314,  distributed  as  follows: 

General  obligations, $12,884,549.55 

Department  of  Justice  (courts,  etc.),        .    .  1,006,308.51 

Department  of  War, 5,918,598.16 

Department  of  the  Treasury 727,892.45 

Department  of  the  Navy, 1,091,969.65 

Government,  Administration, 4,035,071.43 

Interior  Improvements  (Fomento),    ....  746,925.15 

"There  are  in  Cuba  1,631,687  inhabitants,  according  to  the  last 
census,  that  of  1887.  That  is  to  say,  that  this  budget  burdens  them  in 
the  proportion  of  $16.18  for  each  inhabitant.  The  Spaniards  in  Spain 
pay  only  42. 06  pesetas  per  head. 

"The  cause  of  the  ruin  of  Ctiba,  despite  her  sugar  output  of  one 
million  tons  and  her  vast  tobacco  fields,  can  be  easily  explained.  Cuba 
does  not  capitalize,  and  it  does  not  capitalize  because  the  fiscal  regime 
imposed  upon  the  country  does  not  permit  it.  The  money  derived  from 
its  large  exportations  does  not  return  either  in  the  form  of  importations- 
of  goods  or  of  cash.  It  remains  abroad  to  pay  the  interest  of  its  huge 
debt,  to  cover  the  incessant  remittances  of  funds  by  the  Spaniards  \vlio 
hasten  to  send  their  earnings  out  of  the  country,  to  pay  from  our  treasury 
the  pensioners  who  live  in  Spain,  and  to  meet  the  drafts  forwarded  by 
every  mail  from  Cuba  by  the  Spaniards  as  a  tribute  to  their  political 
patrons  in  the  Metropolis,  and  to  help  their  families. 

"  Cuba  pays  $2,192,795  in  pensions  to  those  on  the  retired  list  and 
to  superannuated  officials  not  in  service.  Most  of  this  money  is 
exported.  The  first  chapters  of  the  Cuban  budget  imply  the  exportation 
of  over  $10,600,000.  Cuba  pays  a  subsidy  of  $471,836.68  to  the 
Transatlantic  Company.  It  would  be  impossible  to  calculate  the  amount 
of  money  taken  out  of  Cuba  by  private  individuals  ;  but  this  constant 
exportation  of  capital  signifies  that  nobody  is  contented  in  Cuba  and  that 
everybody  mistrusts  its  future.  The  consequence  is  that,  notwithstanding 
the  apparently  favorable  commercial  balance,  exchange  is  constantly  and 
to  a  high  degree  against  Cuba. 

"On  the  other  hand,  if  Cuba  labors  and  strives  to  be  on  the  same 
plane  as  its  most  progressive  competitors,  this  is  the  work  of  her  own 
people,  who  do  not  mind  any  sacrifices  ;  but  the  government  cares  little 


(159) 


i6o 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


or  nothing  about  securing  to  the  country  such   means  of  furthering  its 
development  as  are  consigned  in  the  budget  under  the  head  of  'Fomento.' 

"And  now,  during  the  present  war,  Spain  finds  that,  although  the 
appropriations  consigned  in  our  budgets  since  1878  amount  to  nearly 
$500,000,000,  not  a  single  military  road  has  been  built,  no  fortifications, 
no  hospitals,  and  there  is  no  material  of  war.  The  State  has  not  provided 
even  for  its  own  defence.  In  view  of  this  fact,  nobody  will  be  surprised 
to  hear  that  a  country  670  kilometres  long,  with  an  area  of  118,833 
square  kilometres,  has  only  246^2  lineal  kilometres  of  high  roads,  and 


these  almost  exclusively  in  the  province  of  Havana.  In  that  of 
Santiago  de  Cuba  there  are  9  kilometres  ;  in  Puerte  Principe  and  Las 
Villas  not  a  single  one.  Cuba  has  3506  kilometres  of  sea  shore  and  fifty- 
four  ports  ;  only  fifteen  of  these  are  open  to  commerce.  In  the  labyrinth 
of  keys,  sand-banks  and  breakers  adjacent  to  our  coasts  there  are  only 
nineteen  lighthouses  of  all  classes.  Many  of  our  ports,  some  of  the  best 
among  them,  are  filling  up.  The  coasting  steamers  can  hardly  pass  the 
bars  at  the  entrance  of  the  ports  of  Nuevitas,  Gibara,  Baracoa  and 
Santiago  de  Cuba.  Private  parties  have  sometimes  been  willing  to  remedy 


THE   CUBA   LIBRE    MOVEMENT. 


161 


these  evils  ;  but  then  the  central  administration  has  interfered,  and  after 
years  of  red  tape,  things  have  remained  worse  than  before.  In  the  course 
of  twenty-eight  years  only  139  kilometres  of  high-roads  have  been  built, 
and  practically  no  internal  improvements  have  been  made. ' ' 

According  to  the  Spanish  rule  of  the  island,  the  natives  and  rightful 
owners  of  the  land  have  no  voice  in  their  government,  the  product  of 
their  labor  is  confiscated  without  any  return  whatsoever,  and  the  people 


THE    PORT   OF   BARCELONA,  SPAIN. 

have  lived,  during  all  these  years,  in  the  agony  of  despair  and  under  the 
iron  heel  of  a  merciless  oppression.  Not  only  in  vindication  of  an  eternal 
principle,  but  for  the  continuance  of  existence,  these  people  appeal  to 
arms.  As  Americans  who  prize  our  blood-bought  freedom,  and  who 
desire  to  offer  not  only  a  heart  of  sympathy,  but  a  hand  to  aid  those  who 
are  fighting  a  similar  battle,  we  have  taken  our  stand  for  Cuba  Libre. 

What  is  meant  by  this,  expressed   by  this  term,  has  been  pointed 

out. 

n 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


The   two   eastern    provinces   of  Cuba   are   practically    free  and  are 

commonly  called  "Cuba  Libre."  Spanish  garrisons  still  exist  there 
because  they  are  supported  and  supplied  by  forces 
in  other  parts  of  the  island.  These  two  provinces, 
Santiago  de  Cuba  and  Puerto  Principe,  are  in  area 
more  than  half  the  habitable  part  of  the  whole  island, 
and  yet  have  not  over  a  fifth  of  its  population.  San- 
tiago de  Cuba  had,  according  to  the  last  census, 
272,319  inhabitants,  of  whom  157,980  were  white, 
and  Puerto  Principe  had  only  67,789,  of  whom 
52,232  were  white.  None  of  the  ports,  declared 
blockaded  by  the  President's  proclamation,  are  in 
these  provinces. 

Cienfuegos,  the  only  port  blockaded  on  the 
southern  shore  of  the  island,  is  in  Santa  Clara 
province,  and  is  the  meeting  point  of  four  railways. 
Excepting  Havana,  this  is  the  most  populous  prov- 
ince, having  354,122  inhabitants,  of  whom  244,345 
are  white.  The  railroad,  crossing  the  island  to 

Sagua  la  Grande,  is  of  military  importance,  though  Spain  would  find  it  of 

no  use  if  American  troops  were  once  firmly  lodged  on  the  island  west 

of  Santa  Clara.     This  province  and 

Pinar  del  Rio,  at  the  west  end  of  the 

island,  have  been   largely  held  by 

the    insurgents,    but    not   entirely. 

The  westernmost  point  covered  by 

the  blockade,  Bahia  Honda,  is  in  the 

province  of  Pinar  del  Rio,  but  near 

its  eastern  limit,  and  the  population 

of   that    province    is    225,291,    of 

which  167,160  are  white. 

There  remain  the  two  provinces 

of  Havana  and  Matanzas,  covering 

in  length  about  140  miles  of  the  nar- 
rowest part  of  the  island,  but  having 

nearly  half  the  entire  population  of       •••••••••• 


KING   ALFONSO   XIII. 


QUEEN   REGENT   MARIA    CHRISTINA. 


Cuba.      Havana     province    has 

451,928  inhabitants,  of  whom  344,- 

417  are  white,  and  Matanzas  259,570,  of  whom  143,169  are  white,  the 

colored  population  being  greater  in  therlatter  than  in  any  other  province. 


THE   CUBA   LIBRE   MOVEMENT.  163 

Cardenas,  the  most  eastern  of  the  northern  ports  blockaded  in  Cuba,  is 
about  half  way  between  the  eastern  and  western  borders  of  Matanzas, 
and  has  been  considered  an  eligible  point  for  the  landing  of  troops,  as 
it  is  not  fortified  and  is  the  terminus  of  two  railways.  The  road  thence  to 
Matanzas  is  not  very  difficult,  judging  from  military  maps,  though  it  runs 
in  part  through  a  somewhat  hilly  country. 

Practically  the  entire  hold  of  Spain  in  Cuba  depends  on  its  strength 
in  the  two  provinces  of  Havana  and  Matanzas,  and  it  probably  could  not 
hold  the  latter  a  single  day  if  it  were  not  in  possession  of  Havana.  But 
where  the  island  is  narrowest,  only  twenty-eight  miles  southward  from 
Havana,  are  found  the  chief  support  and  strength  of  Spain,  and  not 
unnaturally,  since  its  government  has  maintained  itself  for  many  years  by 
plundering  a  great  portion  of  the  people  for  the  benefit  of  the  small 
number  of  Spaniards  and  other  beneficiaries  of  the  government  residing 
in  or  about  Havana.  It  is  in  that  province,  with  a  quarter  of  the  whole 
population  of  Cuba,  and  more  than  an  eighth  of  the  entire  population 
outside  the  city,  that  Spanish  authority  is  strongly  supported  for  obvious 
interested  reasons.  Once  broken  there,  that  authority  would  immediately 
cease  to  exist  anywhere  on  the  island. 

The  inhabitants  of  Cuba  Libre  act  as  citizens  of  a  republic  ;  they 
address  each  other  as  ciudadano  (citizen);  the  peasants  live  in  their  clear- 
ings on  the  mountain  trails,  making  their  cheese  and  honey  as  if  war  were 
not  in  the  land;  every  form  of  lawlessness  among  themselves  is  suppressed; 
parents  are  required  by  law  to  send  their  children  to  school;  the  tallercs, 
or  government  workshops,  furnish  the  army,  as  far  as  possible,  with  cloth- 
ing and  equipments;  and  now  and  then,  as  you  pass  through  the  wild 
mountain  forests,  you  will  come  across  shoe  shops,  saddle  shops,  broad- 
brimmed  straw  hat  tallercs  and  repair  stores.  Nearly  all  of  those  who 
do  not  carry  arms  are  by  their  labor  directly  or  indirectly  aiding  the  cause 
of  Cuba  Libre,  so  dear  to  their  hearts. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


America,  Cuba's  Good  Samaritan 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

AMERICA,   CUBA'S  GOOD  SAMARITAN. 

President  McKinley's  appeal  for  Cuba's  starving  people— Restrained  from  hus- 
bandry by  Weyler's  decree — Consular  supervision  promised — The  Christian 
Herald's  fund  opened— A  central  Cuban  relief  committee  appointed  by  the 
President— Early  shipments  of  supplies— Regular  weekly  consignments  of 
food,  quinine,  etc. — Twenty  thousand  dollars  a  day  needed  to  sustain  life — 
The  suffering  described  by  an  eye-witness  — Half  a  million  slain  by  hunger — 
Admissions  of  a  Spaniard— A  living  baby  at  its  dead  mother's  breast — The 
busy  death-carts — An  appalling  statistical  table — The  Christian  Herald's  offer 
to  Clara  Barton — Red  Cross  nurses  for  the  survivors  of  the  "Maine" — The 
proprietor  of  the  Christian  Herald  in  relief  work  in  Cuba — A  characteristic 
incident  from  the  west. 

jEFORE  the  opening  of  the  present  year  President  McKinley  in 
a  proclamation  set  before  the  American  people  the  pitiable 
condition  of  the  non-combatant  population  of  Cuba.  Because 
of  the  stringent  laws  of  Weyler's  military  administration  all 
tillage  of  the  ground  was  prohibited,  sowing  and  reaping  were  suspended 
for  several  seasons,  and  consequently  thousands  of  the  peasantry  were 
suffering  for  the  necessaries  of  life.  It  soon  became  evident  that  the 
people  were  nearing  the  shadows  of  a  dreadful  famine,  and  the  only  hope 
for  them  must  come  from  our  shores.  Regardless  of  the  political 
questions  pending  between  this  country  and  Spain,  Secretary  Sherman, 
Senator  Hale  and  other  statesmen  gave  their  earnest  support  to  the 
President  in  laying  the  distressing  facts  before  this  country;  and  the 
announcement  was  made  that  our  Consul-General  at  Havana,  assisted 
by  all  United  States  consuls  in  Cuba,  would  personally  supervise  the 
distribution  of  all  relief  funds  contributed.  From  every  part  of  our 
country  there  came  a  hearty  response  to  this  call,  and  within  a  few  weeks 
thousands  of  dollars  and  carloads  of  provisions  were  given  by  a  generous 
people.  When  the  news  came  across  the  waters  of  the  suffering  in  Russia, 
India  and  Armenia,  the  Christian  Herald,  of  New  York,  acted  as  a  mighty 
agent  in  the  relief  of  the  distressed,  by  its  own  contributions  and  by 
opening  its  columns  for  contributions;  and  \vhen  it  was  known  that  Cuba 
was  in  need  this  journal  was  foremost  in  the  beneficent  work  of  relief.  After 

(167) 


1 68 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR    FOR   CUBA. 


forwarding  its  own  contribution  of  $1000  to  Consul-General  Lee,  at 
Havana,  a  telegram  was  sent  to  Hon.  John  Sherman,  Secretary  of  State, 
tendering  the  co-operation  of  the  Christian  Herald  in  any  relief  work  to 
be  done;  and  soon  afterward  Assistant  Secretary  Adee,  in  behalf  of  the 
government,  proposed  the  appointment  of  an  executive  committee  of  relief 
to  consist  of  three  gentlemen,  under  whose  direction  the  good  work  should 
be  conducted  throughout  the  country.  The  committee  was  as  follows: 
Stephen  E.  Barton,  of  the  American  Red  Cross,  chairman;  Hon.  Charles 
A.  Schieren,  New  York  Chamber  of  Commerce,  secretary  and  treasurer, 
and  Dr.  Louis  Klopsch,  of  the  Christian  Herald.  In  organizing  for  its 
work  the  committee  determined  to  invite  the  co-operation  of  the  various 
chambers  of  commerce  and  boards  of  trade  throughout  the  country;  and 


SUFFERERS   AT  THE   CENTRAL  RELIEF  STATION,    HAVANA. 

thus,  without  delay,  it  prepared  itself  for  practical  service.     The  State 
Department  in  Washington  issued  the  following  notification: 

' '  The  Secretary  of  State  has  the  pleasure  to  announce  to  the  charita- 
bly disposed  public  of  the  United  States  that,  through  the  co-operation  of 
the  American  National  Red  Cross  and  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  of  New 
York,  and  in  connection  with  the  generous  offer  of  the  Christian  Herald, 
heretofore  made  public,  a  Central  Committee  of  three  has  been  organized 
in  the  city  of  New  York  for  the  reception  and  forwarding  of  money  and 
supplies  for  the  relief  of  the  suffering  people  of  the  island  of  Cuba,  in 
whose  behalf  the  Secretary  of  State  appealed  to  the  benevolent  people  of 
the  United  States  on  the  twenty-fourth  of  December. 


(i69) 


170 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


"  The  Central  Cuban  Relief  Committee,  as  now  organized,  is  com- 
posed of  Mr.  Stephen  E.  Barton,  second  vice-president  of  the  American 
National  Red  Cross;  Mr.  Charles  A.  Schieren,  a  member  of  the  Chamber 

of  Commerce 
and  repre- 
senting  that 
body,  and 
Mr.  Louis 
Klopsch,  the 
proprietor  of 
the  Christian 
Herald,  of 
New  York. 

' '  The  Cen- 
tral Cuban 
Relief  Com- 
mittee will 
shortly  make 

public  appeal  for  money  and  supplies  to  be  sent  to  Cuba  for  the  relief  of  the 
destitution  and  suffering  now  existing,  and  which  so  nearly  appeals  to 
ever}'  gener- 
ous sentiment 
of  the  Ameri- 
can people, 
w  ho  h  a  v e 
never  turned  a 
deaf  ear  to  a 


AMERICAN    CONGRESSIONAL    VISITORS   AT   MATANZAS. 


cry  for  help 
from  their 
needy  and  af- 
flicted breth- 
ren in  other 
lands.  In  the 
meantime,  and 
with  a  view  to 
encouraging 
the  promptest  aid  from 


ON    A    PALACE    PORCH. 

The  two  little  sisters  lay  dying  on  the  stones  in  jront  of  the  Gov- 
ernor's Palace,  Matanzas  City.  They  lay  for  twelve  hours 
untended.  Diei  in  hospital. 


^  and  all  quarters,  contributions  and  supplies 
may  be  forwarded  to  New  York,  addressed  to  any  one  of  the  three 
members  of  the  committee,  with  the  assurance  that  they  will  be  duly 
acknowledged  and  sent  at  once  to  the  Consul-General  at  Havana." 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   GOOD   SAMARITAN. 


The  most  heartrending  reports  of  distress  coming  continuall}7  from 
the  island,  arrangements  were  made  for  the  shipment  of  provisions  by 
steamer  directly  from  the  New  York  port ;  and  in  this  way  thousands  of 
tons  of  provisions  were  sent  to  relieve  the  suffering.  At  this  time 
the  Christian  Herald  contained  this  statement : 

"  Our  first  cargoes  of  American  food,  clothing  and  medicines,  which 
arrived  in  Havana  several  days  ago,  are  now  being  distributed  by  General 
Lee  and  his  official  corps  among  the  sick,  starving  and  destitute  Cuban 
concentrados.  Although  the  details  of  this  distribution  have  not  yet  been 

received,  it  is  certain  that  these  first 
evidences  of  practical  sympathy  from 
Christian  America  will  be  the  means  of 
saving  many  lives  and  relieving  much 
suffering.  One  of  the  shipments,  con- 


SCENE   IN    THE   REUEF   HOSPITAL,    HAVAiNA. 

signed  by  the  Central  Relief  Committee  to  General  Lee,  and  sent  by 
the  steamship  '  Vigilancia  '  from  New  York,  consisted  of  30,203  pack- 
ages of  various  sizes,  containing  food,  clothing  and  medicines.  The  food 
included  bread,  flour,  oatmeal,  peas,  salt  fish,  bacon,  rice,  potatoes  and  a 
variety  of  canned  goods.  In  addition  to  these,  there  were  sent  a  large 
number  of  packages  containing  quinine,  the  whole  aggregating  1,000,000 
grains— the  largest  shipment  of  the  drug  made  from  any  American  port 
since  the  close  of  the  Civil  War. 


I72 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


"Secretary   Sherman  has  advised 
sent,  and  our  Government  gives  us  the 


A    NOOK   IN   THE   RELIEF   HOSPITAL,    HAVANA. 


ately  be  used  in  the  purchase  of  food 
Spain  has  consented  to  allow  all  sup- 
plies for  the  relief  work  to  enter 
Cuban  ports  free  of  duty.  Shipments 
are  now  being  made  twice  a  week  by 
steamer  from  New  York,  reaching 
General  Lee's  hands  four  days  after 
sailing.  Responses  to  the  widespread 
appeals  are  coming  in  from  many 
quarters,  demonstrating  that  when 
our  generous  -  hearted  people  are 
brought  to  realize  the  condition  of 
the  men,  women  and  children  in 
Cuba,  they  will  come  gladly  to  their 
aid.  Cablegrams  from  Havana,  giv- 
ing the  substance  of  dispatches  from 
many  points  on  the  island,  show  no 
abatement  of  the  suffering." 

For  weeks  every  steamer  leav- 
ing New  York  for  Havana  carried 
consignments  of  food,  clothing  and 


that  not  money  but  supplies  be 
assurance  that  the  real  sufferers 
will  receive  the 
full  benefit  of 
the  contribu- 
tions, which 
will  be  distrib- 
uted by  Amer- 
icans only. 
Consequently 
all  the  money 
forwarded  to 
the  Christian 
Herald  for  this 
work,  on  being 
turned  over  to 
the  Central  Re- 
lief Committee, 
will  immedi- 
supplies,  clothing  and  medicines. 


A    FAMINE-STRICKEN    FAMILY. 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   GOOD   SAMARITAN. 


173 


medicines  from  the  Relief  Committee  to  Consul  L,ee.  One  shipment 
contained  two  hundred  and  fifty  barrels  of  potatoes,  forty-six  barrels 
of  pilot  bread,  fifty  boxes  of  codfish,  fifty  bags  of  rice,  two  hundred 
barrels  of  cornmeal,  five  hundred  thousand  grains  of  quinine,  five 
cases  of  hollow-ware,  cases  of  canned  goods  and  drugs;  and  another 
shipment  contained  forty-eight  thousand  pounds  of  rice.  On  the  first 
of  February  General  L,ee  received  reports  from  various  parts  of  the 
island  that  two  hundred  thousand  persons  were  starving;  and  it  was 
estimated  that  with  ten  cents  for  each  person,  it  wrould  take  twenty  thousand 
dollars  a  day  to  stop  the  terrible  death-rate  among  these  wretched  people. 


RECONCEXTRADOS   AWAITING   THE   DISTRIBUTION    OF   SUPPLIES. 


During  the  month  of  February  the  consular  reports  from  Cuba,  the  letters 
from  visitors  to  the  island,  the  articles  written  by  correspondents  to  their 
American  journals  and  the  personal  descriptions  of  those  who  returned 
home  from  the  blighted  island,  increased  the  sympathy  of  Americans  for 
the  Cubans  and  elicited  their  liberal  gifts.  Among  the  press  correspond- 
ents in  Cuba  was  Mr.  Sylvester  Scovel,  who  at  no  slight  risk  of  his  life 
personally  visited  the  refuges  of  the  starving  people  and  graphically 
described  the  appalling  scenes  he  witnessed.  One  extract  from  his  corre- 
spondence must  suffice.  On  January  31,  writing  from  Havana  he  said: 

' '  Over  two-thirds  of  the  peaceable  people  of  the  island  of  Cuba  have 
died,  or  are  dying,  from  hunger.     Under  present  conditions,  and  within 


174 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


four  months'  time,  one  million  human  beings  will  have  starved  to  death, 
within  a  radius  of  two  hundred  miles  from  Key  West.  Both  Spanish  press 
and  Spanish  officials  have  admitted  that  half  a  million  people — 500,000 
non-combatant  men,  women  and  children — have  perished  in  Cuba  during 
the  last  twenty  months. 

"  Now  there  are  still  three  quarters  of  a  million  people  left  alive  in 
Cuba's     towns.       One-third   of    these    have    monev.       These    need    no 


REFUGEE  CUBAN  CHILDREN   NOW  IN   THE  UNITED  STATES. 

These  fortunate  little  ones  are  being  cared  for  in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

assistance.  One-third  are  starving.  These  can  be  saved.  One-third  are 
even  now  at  the  very  point  of  death  from  famine.  These  are  beyond  hope. 
Such  figures  dwarf  into  insignificance  the  wars,  plagues  and  massacres  of 
modern  history.  The  fact  that  within  less  than  two  years  half  a  million 
people  out  of  a  million  and  a  half  have  starved  to  death,  and  that  another 
quarter  million  must  follow  them,  is  absolutely  without  a  parallel,  and  it 


(175) 


1 76  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

is  hard  for  American  readers,  living  quietly  at  home,  to  realize  that  within 
four  hours'  steaming  from  our  shores,  a  people  has  been  literally  halved 
by  death. 

' '  Let  me  begin  the  story  by  pointing  you  to  the  Spanish  statements, 
printed  under  the  watchful  censorship  of  a  rigid  military  regime.  They 
are  necessarily  conservative,  and  free  from  all  exaggeration.  One  of  the 
strongest  conservative  Havana  dailies,  the  El  Diario  de  la  Marina,  said: 
'  The  scourge  of  hunger  has  finished  with  more  than  five  hundred  thousand 
persons  of  the  fields — children  and  women  in  the 


S.  S.   "STATE  OF  TEXAS"   CARRYING   REUEF  SUPPIJES.— CAPT.  F.  A.  YOUNG. 

greater  part.  .  .  .  But  in  addition  to  the  hunger,  sickness  is  finishing 
up  the  reconcentrados.  Smallpox,  malarial  fever,  infectious  fevers,  dys- 
entery and  other  enteric  diseases,  constitute  the  pathological  conditions 
reigning  in  our  land.' 

"  Senor  Canalejas  informed  the  writer  that  he  estimated  the  number 
of  non-combatants  already  dead  from  hunger  at  half  a  million.  He  had 
just  finished  a  tour  of  Cuba's  cities  to  report  upon  their  condition  to 
Premier  Sagasta.  A  new  minister  of  Spain,  a  patriotic  journalist  and  a 
great  lawyer,  Canalejas,  with  his  facilities  for  getting  at  the  truth,  deserves 
great  praise  for  having  had  the  courage  to  tell  it. 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   GOOD   SAMARITAN. 


'77 


"The  Bishop  of  Havana,  Santander  Y.  Fritos,  has  also  stated  the  loss 
of  life  shown  by  his  parochial  records  to  be  over  the  figure  quoted. 

' '  Of    the    three- 
^^  quarters  of  a  million 

JHfev  living  persons  now  in 

the    towns   of    Cuba, 
BJI  two-thirds  have  prac- 

Jjk  tically  no  means  of 
subsistence.  The 
•<«,  other  third  are  fairly 
able  to  buy  food  fof 
themselves.  The  al- 
most absolute  cessa- 
tion of  sugar-making 
and  tobacco-raising 
has  brought  hitherto 
rich  families  to  ex- 
treme poverty.  To 
their  credit,  be  it  said, 
these  thousands  of 
of  genteel  want,  have  done,  and  are  doing,  all 


A  TRAVELING  DAIRY. 


families,  even  in  the  tlm 

they    can    for      ,. 

their   destitute 

countrymen. 

But   that    is    I 

comparatively 

little.    Captain  - 

General  Blanco 

is  also  using  his 

slender     facili- 

ties to  the  ut- 

most in  reliev- 

ing    distress. 

But  that  is  very 

little  also.     In 

a  signed  inter- 

view   General 

Blanco  recently 
.  ,         (  -, 

pect  to  save  three-quarters  of  the  reconcentrados  now  alive. 


A  DEAD  DAUGH™  OF 
A  pooi  country  girl  —  Victim  of  famine  in  Los  Fossos,  Havana. 


Allowing 


I78 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR    CUBA. 


for  the  number  existing  at  that  time,  the  other  quarter  would  amount  to 
about  a  quarter  of  a  million  persons. ' 

"  Havana  has  fewer  reconcen trades,  in  comparison  to  its  population, 
than  almost  any  other  city  or  town  in  Cuba.  Yet,  within  five  minutes' 
walk  from  the  beautiful  square  are  sights  to  make  one  weep.  In  a  big, 
bare  house,  called  '  L,os  Fossos, '  there  are  hourly  scenes  which  beggar 
description.  On  the  bare  floor  in  a  corner  lay  two  women's  forms,  each 
with  a  baby  upon  its  breast.  One  mother  and  one  baby  died  while  I  was 
there.  The  dead  baby  still  lay  upon  its  living  mother's  breast.  She  did 


AN   INTERIOR   IN   t,OS   FOSSOS. 

Scores  oj  the  destitute  were  crowded  in  just  such  chambers  as  this. 

not  know  it  had  died.  She  was  too  weak.  And  the  dead  mother's 
bony  arms  clasped  a  living  baby.  Strong  men  who  saw  that  scene  broke 
down  and  cried.  In  the  same  place  I  have  seen  twelve  uncoffined 
bodies  lying  unregarded  on  the  floor  in  different  parts  of  the  building, 
surrounded  by  closely  packed  women  and  children,  scarcely  less  motion- 
less than  they. 

"  For  over  two  hundred  persons  there  were  seventy-five  small  biscuits, 
and  for  each,  once  a  day,  an  unsavory  panful  of  codfish,  beans,  and  oil, 
all  cooked  together.  The  sufferers  could  not  eat  it. 


i8o 


COLUMBIA'S    WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


"  To  the  bishop's  palace,  thousands  of  babes  in  their  mothers'  arms 
come  for  succor  from  the  society  which  the  good  old  man  has  organized. 
There  are  over  5000  children  registered,  but  only  three  or  four  hundred 
can  be  helped  a  day.  It  would  break  one's  heart  to  see  the  throngs  ot 
sad  women  who  turn  hopelessly  away  without  the  bottle  of  thin  milk  and 
the  handful  of  cornmeal  which  the  few  secure  for  their  little  ones. 

"The  starving  babes!  And  such  babies!  Tiny  skeletons,  with 
the  skin  stretched  tightly  over  the  poor  little  protruding  bones,  or  hanging 
in  folds  over  them  where  the  child-flesh  has  shrunken  away.  They  seem 
all  dead  but  their  eves — their  big,  sad,  beseeching  eves.  There  is  not  a 


WORKERS   AT  THE  CENTRAL   RELIEF  STATION,    ESTRELLA   STREET,    HAVANA. 

man  in  the  United  States  who  could  look  once  into  a  poor,  little,  starving 
reconcentrado  baby's  eyes  without  turning  away.  There  are  thousands 
of  such  babies  to  be  saved.  The  governor  of  the  province  of  Pinar  del 
Rio  states  that  there  are  six  thousand  orphans  there  alone.  No  one  asks 
help  for  them.  Three  days  ago  a  sad  but  not  an  unusual  thing  occurred  in 
the  United  States  consulate.  A  woman  entered,  asking  food.  She  had 
two  little  ones  at  her  skirts  and  a  babe  in  her  arms.  The  baby  died  while 
she  stood  there. 

"  But  the  suffering  is  worse  in  the  smaller  towns  of  Cuba,  where  the 
number  of  destitute  country  people  '  concentrated '  there  has  quadrupled 
and  quintupled  the  population.  In  these  places,  private  charity  was 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   GOOD   SAMARITAN.  181 

almost  instantly  exhausted.  Such  a  town  is  Madruga.  A  Spanish  corre- 
spondent writes  from  there  to  a  Havana  paper  :  '  During  the  past  fort- 
night there  have  been  in  this  place  1 1 2  deaths,  principally  for  lack  of 
food.  From  early  dawn  one  can  see  nothing  else  in  the  streets  but 
women,  men  and  children,  pallid  and  attenuated,  imploring  public  charity; 
others  thrown  upon  door- 
steps, where  they  are  col- 
lected to  be  hauled  to  the 
cemetery.  That  which  hap- 
pens here  is  horrible.  The 
pen  refuses  to  describe  it,  for 
nothing  like  it  ever  hap- 
pened before,  even  in  the 
most  remote  parts  of  Africa.' 

"Another  characteristic 
reconcentrado  town  is  Santo 
Domingo.  La  Lucha,  Ha- 
vana's principal  daily  prints: 

'  'That  which  occurs  and 
which  has  gone  on  here  since 
April  has  no  precedent  in  the 
annals  of  misery.  Hunger 
in  its  awful  nakedness,  want, 
malaria,  and  just  now,  small- 
pox, are  day  after  day  finish- 
ing with  the  people  of  this 
town,  without  any  one  taking 
a  single  measure  to  avert, 
even  in  part,  the  annihilation 
of  Santo  Domingo.  There 
have  died,  out  of  6000,  more 
than  4000  persons  according 
to  the  medical  records.' 

"  The    spectacle    could 

.      .  ,.  A    HAVANA    FAMINE   VICTIM. 

not   be   more    heartrending. 

In  the  railroad  station  and  in  the  streets  stagger  a  multitude  of  suffering 
reconcentrados,  pale,  attentuated,  shrunken  up  by  fevers,  simply  awaiting 
the  moment  when  they  shall  fall  dead  in  the  doorway  of  some  building.  It 
is  impossible  to  form  an  idea  of  such  misery  without  actually  seeing  these 
horrible  sights.  In  a  cart,  piled  one  upon  the  other,  they  carry  as  many 


182  COLUMBIA'S    WAR    FOR    CUBA. 

as  fifteen  corpses  which  are  dumped  into  a  trench.  I  went  to  Santo  Domingo. 
Most  of  the  people  had  already  died  and  the  others  were  dying.  But  there 
are  at  least  a  thousand  left  who  can  yet  be  saved.  The  little  towns  away 
from  the  railroads  and  cut  off  by  the  war  from  any  but  spasmodic  convoys 
of  supplies  are  cemeteries." 

"A  small  newspaper,  La  Union  of  Guines,  Havana  province,  says  : 
"  There  have  been  brought  here  from  the  district  Chascajaba,  two 
hundred  and  fifty  persons, — which  is  the  approximate  total  number  of 


AT  THK   CLINIC   IN   THK   LKE   OkPHANAUK. 

Swollen  famine  sufferers  being  tr-eated  by  the  physician  in  the  examination  room. 

inhabitants  of   that  place.     Of  these  only  five  are  alive  at  the  present 
moment  !  ' 

"  A  newspaper  of  the  important  town  of  Trinidad  gives  the  following 
plain  story  of  misery:  In  Condado  and  in  Caracusey  the  people  have 
died  from  destitution  and  hunger  to  such  a  point  that  the  cemetery  of 
Caracusey  will  not  hold  the  dead  bodies,  and  in  Rio  del  Rey  and  Condado 
for  some  time  they  have  buried  the  corpses  in  the  pasture  of  the  plantation 
of  Algaba  without  even  protecting  the  ground  where  they  dig  the  burial 
ditches  by  so  much  as  a  fence  to  keep  the  dogs  and  the  pigs  from  rooting 
up  the  bodies.  Thousands  and  thousands  of  Cubans  have  thus  been 
buried.  Some  idea  may  be  gained  of  the  extent  of  Cuba's  hunger  plague 
from  the  fact  that  there  is  hardly  a  cemetery  in  the  island  which  has  not 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   GOOD   SAMARITAN.  183 

been  enlarged,  and  that  even  then  there  is  hardly  one  where  the  corpses 
have  not  come  so  fast  that  earlier  ones  have  to  be  removed  before  the 
quicklime  has  completed  its  work." 

Nearly  Half  a  Million  Dead  of  Famine. 

These  statistics  of  Cuba's  hunger  plague  are  furnished  by  Mr.  Sylvester 
Scovel,  now  in  Cuba,  and  are  drawn  from  official  and  other  sources.  They 
are  entirely  reliable: 

Normal  population  of  Cuba 1,600,000 

Cubans  living  out  of  Cuba  during  the  war     ....      100,000 

Cuban  insurgents  and  their  families  in  the  field    .    .     270,000        370,000 

Number  of  concentrados  in  fortified  towns    ....  1,230,000 

Reconcentrados  brought  into  town  (now  dead)     .    .  380,000 

Lower  classes  of  townspeople  (dead) 100,000 

Estimated  number  dead  of  starvation 480,000 

Alive  in  the  towns  of  Cuba  to-day .  750,000 

These  figures  are  wholly  outside  of  losses  sustained  by  the  war. 

As  the  work  of  relief  continued  it  was  found  wise  to  enlist  the  active 
co-operation  of  the  American  National  Red  Cross,  more  particularly  in 
dealing  with  thousands  of  starving  and  sick  Cuban  mothers  and  children. 
The  Christian  Herald  accordingly  communicated  with  Miss  Clara  Barton, 
president  of  the  Red  Cross,  on  this  subject;  and  Miss  Barton's  acceptance 
was  conveyed  through  the  following  communication: 

"THE  CENTRAL  CUBAN  RELIEF  COMMITTEE, 

"Appointed  by  the  President  of  the  United  States  and  acting  under  the  direction 
of  the  Department  of  State.     Headquarters  :  Temple  Court, 

"  NEW  YORK  CITY,  Feb.  4,  1898. 
"  DR.  IvOUiS  KLOPSCH,  Proprietor  Christian  Herald,  New  York  City. 

"  MY  DEAR  DR.  KLOPSCH: — Your  noble  and  esteemed  letter  of  the 
3ist  ult.,  addressed  to  Miss  Clara  Barton,  president  of  the  American 
National  Red  Cross,  asking  if  she  would  proceed  immediately  to  Havana 
and  take  up  the  work  of  establishing  hospitals,  particularly  for  the  relief 
of  the  starving  and  sick  mothers  and  children,  and  pledging  the  generous 
support  of  the  Christian  Herald,  to  the  extent  of  $10,000  a  month, 
wras  duly  received.  I  am  requested  by  Miss  Barton  to  ask  pardon  for  the 
seeming  delay  in  responding  to  your  letter,  and  explain  that  she  was 
compelled  to  defer  the  acceptance  of  \ our  offer  (  which  she  so  earnestly 


i84 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


desired  to  accept)  until  she  could  have  an  opportunity  to  confer  with  the 
Secretary  of  State,  and  through  that  department,  with  Consul-General 
Lee  at  Havana,  in  order  that  she  might  know  that  such  an  under- 
taking would  entirely  meet  the  fullest  desires  and  approval  of  the  gov- 
ernment. 

"  It  was  only  last  night,  at  a  late  hour,  that  she  was  able  to  come  to 
a  final  decision  that  she  would  go,  and  to  determine  how  soon  she  might 
be  able  to  take  her  departure.  It  is  with  great  pleasure  that  I  am  now 
instructed  to  say  to  you,  in  behalf  of  the  American  National  Red  Cross, 
that  Miss  Barton  accepts  your  proposal  and  has  made  her  preparations  for 
taking  the  Saturday  night  train  from  Washington,  D.  C.,  via  Tampa,  Fla. , 
which  should  enable  her  to  arrive  in  Havana  on  Tuesdav  morning  next. 


A   CROWDED   CORNER   OF   LOS   FOSSKS,    HAVANA. 

Miss  Barton  desires  me  to  add  that  as  soon  after  her  arrival  in  Havana  as 
she  can  ascertain  the  precise  situation  and  necessities,  and  formulate  a 
plan  for  carrying  out  your  suggestion,  she  will  communicate  with  'you 
fully  in  the  matter.  :  '  -.  4 

"  In  going  to  Havana,  she  carries  with  her  letters  of  introduction  and 
commendation  from  the  Department  of  State  and  the  President  to  Consul- 
General  Lee.  She  also  carries  a  letter  from  the  Spanish  Minister  at 
Washington,  expressing  the  full  approval  of  her  mission  by  the  Spanish 
government. 

' '  Very  sincerely  yours, 

"STEPHEN  E.  BARTON, 
"  Second  Vice- President  American  National  Red  Cross." 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   GOOD; SAMARITAN.  185 

Miss  Clara   Barton's  Letter. 

"JACKSONVILLE,  Fla.,  February  6,  1898. 

"  DEAR  MR.  KLOPSCH: — It  would,  have  given  me  much  pleasure  to 
have  made  an  earlier  acknowledgment  of  your  magnanimous  letter  of  Jan- 
uary 31,  received  by  me  February  2,  had  time  and  opportunity  made  it 
possible.  As  it  is,  I  employ  the  moments  en_,  route,  wraiting  in  a  railroad 
station  for  that  purpose. 

"Notwithstanding  your  voluntary  guarantee  of  financial  support, 
greater  than  any  proffer  I  have  ever  known,  made  in  aid  of  any  humani- 
tarian effort,  and  which  must  stand  before  the  world  as  a  leading  example, 


MRS.    SCOVEL,    AN    AMERICAN    LADY,    FEEDING    RECONCENTRADOS. 

and  a  lasting  honor  both  to  yourself  and  the  grand  journal  you  represent, 
it  was  still  proper  from  the  high  nature  of  the  call,  that  the  matter  of  my 
action  be  submitted  to  the  government  before  giving  my  final  reply.  I 
need  not  now  say  to  you  how  the  proposition  was  received,  nor  that  the 
haste  required  for  my  departure  left  me  no  spare  moment  of  time  until  the 
present. 

"  I  can  only  add  that  the  offer  is  characteristic  of  the  Christian  Herald 
and  its  patrons,  and  my  one  prayer  is  that  wisdom  and  ability  be  granted 


1 86 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


me  to  justify  their  hopes  and  sustain  the  trust  so  magnificently  reposed  in 
me,  both  by  them  and  by  you.. 

"  It  will  be  my  purpose  to  give  to  the  readers  of  the  Christian  Herald 
such  information  as  I  am  able  as  to  the  distribution  of  their  gifts,  and  the 
needs  of  the  suffering  people  whom  they  are  striving,  with  a  charity  so 
truly  Christlike,  to  relieve. 

"Accept,  I  pray  you,  Mr.  Klopsch,  the  high  appreciation  and  regard  of 

"  Yours  sincerely, 

"  CLARA  BARTON, 
'  'President  American  National  Red  Cross. ' ' 


The   "Christian   Herald's"   Answer. 

"  NEW  YORK,  February  8,  1898. 

"Miss  CLARA  BARTON,  Havana,  Cuba. 

"  DEAR  Miss  BARTON:— I  was  very  glad  indeed  to  receive  your  letter 

dated  at  Jacksonville,  and  to  learn  from  it  how  fully  you  appreciated  the 

object     of 

2        •HRH^HB  your  mission 

to    Cuba. 

I  Ever  since  I 

—  V  had  received 
authentic  in- 
formation as 
to  the  true 
status  of  the 
people  there, 
I  have  been 
greatly  trou- 
bled in  heart 
and  soul. 
The  suffering 
is  so  intense, 
and  much  of 
it  so  easily 
avoidable, 
that  I  could 
hardly  wait 
for  your  re- 
ply accepting 
the  call.  It 
seemed  to  me 

that  the  messengers  of   mercy  should   be   provided  with  wings,   and  be 

swift  of  flight,  in  order  the  more  speedily  to  stay  the  hand  of  suffering 

and  of  death. 

"  I  cannot  express  to  you  how  relieved  and  delighted  I  am  that  you 

are  now  in  Cuba,  ready  to  do  intelligently,  lovingly  and  prayerfully,  all 


RECONCKNTRADO    HOYS    IN    A    HAVANA   SUHUKH. 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   GOOD   SAMARITAN. 


187 


that  you  possibty  can  to  quickly  and  effect! vely  relieve  the  sick,  the  suf- 
fering, and  the  dying.  On  Friday  last,  I  sent  you  a  brief  letter  and 
check  for  five  thousand  dollars,  which  money  I  place  at  your  disposal  to 
be  expended  specially  for  the  relief  of  the  sick  women  and  children, 


DR.  JOHN   GUITERAS. 

•according  to  your  own  best  judgment.  More  money  will  be  sent  to  you, 
just  as  soon  as  you  call  for  it,  and  you  may  confidently  expect  financial 
support  to  the  extent  of  at  least  Ten  Thousand  Dollars  a  month  for 
February,  March  and  April. 


188 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


"  We  would  like  to  have  from  you  a  letter  twice  a  week,  setting  forth 
the  condition  and  the  needs  of  the  people  among  whom  you  labor,  and  we 


GENERAL  NESTOR  ARANGUREN. 


will  receive  with  much  gratitude  any  suggestions  which  may  be  apt  to 
prove  helpful  to  us  in  the  larger  work  of  relieving  the  famine  sufferers, 
in  which  we  are  engaged. 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   GOOD   SAMARITAN. 


189 


"  Now,  dear  Miss  Barton,  I  pray  that  you  may  be  divinely  protected 
and  guided  in  this  great  enterprise,  to  which  you  are  consecrating  your 
energies,  and  that  success  may  attend  your  efforts;  that,  through  your 


instrumentality,  lives  may  be  saved,  and  suffering  alleviated,  the  hungry 
fed,  and  the  naked  clothed.  May  you  bring  light  to  hearts  that  are  dark, 
hope  to  those  that  are  hopeless,  jo)^  and  happiness  where  sorrow  and 


190  COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 

desolation  hold  sway,  and  may  it  all  be  done  in  the  name  of  Him  whom 
we  both  delight  to  serve,  and  may  His  blessing  rest  upon  you  and  upon 
the  work  in  which  you  are  now  engaged. 

"  Yours  very  cordially, 

"  Louis  KLOPSCH." 

The  suffering  among  the  Cubans  became  so  widespread  that  the 
Spanish  government  unreservedly  threw  all  the  ports  of  Cuba  open  to 
relief  contributions;  and  this  significant  fact  gave  a  new  impetus  to 
America's  practical  charity  for  the  island.  A  letter  from  Consul-General 
Lee  to  Dr.  Klopsch,  showing  the  great  interest  taken  by  both  of  these 
gentlemen  in  the  relief  fund,  we  are  allowed  to  present  : 

"CONSULATE  GENERAL  OF  THE 

"UNITED  STATES  OF  AMERICA, 

"HAVANA,  February  9,  1898. 

"  MY  DEAR  SIR:  I  am  glad  to  hear  that  there  is  such  a  wide  and 
growing  interest  in  the  condition  of  the  destitute  on  this  island,  and  that 
you  are  confident  a  large  sum  will  be  raised  for  their  relief.  I  do  not 
think  it  is  possible  for  any  one  to  realize  the  situation  here  without  being 
present. 

"Among  other  measures  of  relief  I  have  considered  the  advisability 
of  renting  a  large  and  suitable  building  for  the  purpose  of  founding  a 
destitute  orphan  asylum,  where  the  little  starving  children,  who  have  no- 
fathers  and  mothers  or  other  relatives  to  watch  over  and  protect  them, 
can  be  placed,  and  where  they  will  be  fed  and  taken  care  of,  and,  per- 
haps, later,  given  some  form  of  education. 

"  I  find  that  I  can  rent  a  most  commodious  establishment,  with  a 
large  bath  and  all  conveniences,  as  well  as  some  ground  around  it,  which 
the  children  could  use  and  get  their  air  and  exercise.  If  you  could  help 
me  to  pay  said  rent  for,  say,  six  months,  or  possibly  nine,  it  would  in  my 
opinion  be  the  best  assistance  that  could  be  rendered.  I  would,  through 
humane  agents,  collect  these  helpless  little  ones,  and  have  them  transferred 
to  said  establishment,  where  they  would  be  in  charge  of  nurses  and  other 
suitable  attendants.  In  this  shelter  I  shall  place  the  one  hundred  children's 
cots  you  were  good  enough  to  send  me,  and  probably  we  may  want  some 
more,  together  with  the  necessary  articles  of  furniture  such  as  chairs,  small 
tables,  bedclothes,  etc.  I  think  if  you  will  have  such  articles  marked 
'Furniture  for  Hospitals,'  I  will  be  able  to  get  them  delivered  free  of 
duty,  as  was  the  case  with  other  supplies.  From  time  to  time  I  shall  be 
most  happy  to  communicate  with  you  and  keep  you  informed  of  the 
progress  being  made  in  the  great  work  undertaken  by  the  generous  and 
benevolent  people  of  the  United  States. 

[Signed]  "  FITZHUGH  LEE, 

' '  Consul-  General. ' ' 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   GOOD   SAMARITAN.  19! 

While  Americans  were  busy  giving  relief  to  the  people  who  were 
the  victims  of  Spanish  barbarity,  our  noble  ship  "  Maine"  was  blown  up 
in  Havana  harbor  ;  and  those  who  had  been  so  carefully  attending  to  the 


ANTONIO    MACHO. 


wants  of  starving  Cubans  were  called  upon  to  nurse  the  wounded  and 
dying  citizens  of  our  own  loved  land.  The  morning  after  the  terrible 
disaster  Miss  Barton  wrote  the  following  touching  letter  : 


I92 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


"  DEAR  MR.  KLOPSCH: — I  write  to  confirm  the  dispatch  just  sent, 
'  Thanks,  am  with  the  wounded. '  I  want  to  say  more  than  mere  '  thanks  ' 
— your  thoughtful  generosity  demands  it. 

"  Life  has  some  days  hard  to  live  through.     This  is  one  of  them.   It 


DR.    HERMA. 


is  one  week  to-day  since  we  landed  in  Havana.  We  have  done  a  week's 
work.  The  first  two  days  (Wednesday  and  Thursday)  were  spent  in 
visiting  the  worst  places  of  destitution,  hunger,  sickness  and  misery.  The 
next  three  (Friday,  Saturday  and  Sunday),  among  the  various  places  of 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   GOOD  SAMARITAN.  193 

distribution  of  American  food.     Crowds  of  one  thousand,  fifteen  hundred, 


NARCISO   LOPEZ. 


twenty-five  hundred,  three  thousand.     The  next  two  days  (Monday  and 
13 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


Tuesday),  among  the  shipments  of  supplies  from  the  boats,  classifying 
and  learning  the  proportions  one  may  safely  draw  to  feed  such  crowds. 


JOSE   MARTI. 

That  work  brought  us  to  last  night.  Would  one  could  close  the  record 
there,  and  drop  from  it  the  story  of  that  terrible  night  and  this  day  that 
follows  it. 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S    GOOD    SAMARITAN. 


195 


"  At  9.30  we  sat  at  our  desks,  when  the  house  shook  and  doors  flew 
open — a  terrific  burst  as  of  thunder,  and  blazing  balls  playing  in  the 
heavens,  told  us  that  something  had  happened.  Later,  we  knew  that  the 


GENERA^    CALIXTO   GARCIA. 


magnificent  battleship,  where,  at  the  invitation  of  its  gallant  captain,  we 
had  lunched  only  a  few  hours  before,  was  lying — all  that  was  left  of  her — 
burned  to  the  water's  edge,  and  over  two  hundred  and  fifty  of  our  brave 
fellows — a  quarter  of  a  regiment — la}*  mangled,  torn  and  burned,  among 


1 96 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR   FOR  CUBA. 


the  wreck.  A  hundred,  perhaps,  are  still  alive,  scattered  through  hospitals 
and  ships  as  they  were  picked  up.  I  scarce  need  tell  you  of  our  occupa- 
tion of  to-day.  The  Spanish  hospital,  San  Jera,  has  the  greater  number. 


GENERAL  JULIO  SANGUILLI. 

We  got  to  them  early  this  morning  ;   they  were  having  every  attention 
from  surgeons  and  nurses. 

"  I  thought  to  take  the  names  as   I  went  to  them.     The  first  poor 
fellow  I  spoke  to,  peering  through  the  bandages  and  cotton  on  his  burned 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S    GOOD   SAMARITAN.  197 

head  and  face,  said  anxiously,  '  Isn't  this  Miss  Barton  ?'  'Yes'  'I 
knew  you  were  here.  I  thought  you  would  come  to  us.  I  am  so  thank- 
ful.' So  on  with  the  next,  and  the  next,  till  it  was  more  than  I  could 


SENOR  JUAN   ARNAO. 

bear.     I  gave  up  my  little  record  to  some  one  else,  who  will  send  it,  and 
passed  on. 

"  CLARA  BARTON." 

Up  to  the  middle  of  March  the  readers  of  the  Christian  Herald  had 
contributed  nearly  $60,000  to  the  Cuban  Relief  Fund;  journals  in  different 


198 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


parts  of  the  United  States  opened  their  columns  for  contributions;    the 
Red  Cross  and  other  charitable  societies  took  an  increasing  activity  in  the 


GONZAI.O    DE    O.UKSADA. 


good  work;    churches,   missionary  societies,  Sunday-schools   and  young 
peoples'  organizations  and  other  religious  bodies  contributed  generously  to 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   GOOD   SAMARITAN. 


199 


the  fund;    business  firms  took  generous  interest  in  the  movement;    and 
our  general  government  lent  the  great  weight  of  its  influence  to  swell  the 


GENERAL   LACRET. 


large  amount  of  money'and  provisions  sent  to  the  overshadowed  "  Pearl  of 
the  Antilles." 


200  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

On  March  21,  Dr.  Klopsch,  who  at  his  own  expense  had  gone  to  Cuba 
to  personally  assist  in  the  distribution  of  funds  and  provisions,  sent  this 
cablegram  to  the  Christian  Herald: 

"This  is  the  actual  condition  of  affairs  in  Cuba  at  this  date:     Two 


GENERAL  PEDRO  E.    BETANCOURT. 


hundred  and  five  thousand  reconcentrados,  in  over  four  hundred  accessible 
towns,  are  helplessly  destitute.     Unless  we  can  get,  regularly  and  without 


AMERICA,    CUBA'S   GOOD   SAMARITAN.  201 

a  break,  three  hundred  tons  of  cornmeal  and  fifty  tons  of  lard  or  bacon 
every  week  we  can  not  give  effective  relief.  Spasmodic  and  unsystematic 
efforts  simply  defeat  even  the  best  intentions.  Canned  goods  are  useless 
and  condensed  milk  should  be  substituted.  Fifteen  thousand  dollars  weekly 
will  feed  every  starving  man,  woman  and  child  in  Cuba.  Small,  irregular 
consignments  of  food  for  relief  purposes  are  only  tantalizing  and  accom- 
plish but  little  good. 

"Louis  KLOPSCH." 


One  of  the  most  notable  incidents  in  connection  with  the  relief  move- 
ments is  the  following,  which  shows  how  general  throughout  the  land  was 
the  response  to  the  appeals 
On  April  1 1 ,  Mrs. 
Thurston ,  whose 


for  Cuba: 
John    M. 

home  was  in  Omaha,  wrote  an 
appeal  to  the  ' '  Mothers  of 
the  Northland  "  to  feed  starv- 
ing Cuba.  Three  days  later 
Mrs.  Thurston  died.  Three 
days  after  the  death  of  Mrs. 
Thurston  the  World-Herald 
suggested  that  the  greatest 
memorial  to  Mrs.  Thurston 
would  be  to  make  generous 
answer  to  her  appeal  for  help 
for  the  starving  Cubans.  It 
opened  a  "Cuban  Relief  Bu- 
reau ' '  in  Omaha  and  asked 
for  donations.  The  answer  to 
the  appeal  was  magnificent  in 
volume.  A  great  train  of 
twenty-two  cars,  each  car 
loaded  to  its  full  capacity  with 
high-class  provisions,  is  speed- 
ing eastward  to  New  York. 
In  twenty  days  the  World- 
Herald  collected  over  $11,000  in  cash  and  tons  of  provisions  for  the 
Cubans.  These  donations  were  made  by  the  people  of  Nebraska,  Western 
Iowa  and  South  Dakota.  The  train  started  at  3.30  o'clock  on  the  after- 
noon of  April  7 ,  and  'its  departure  was  witnessed  by  a  cheering  crowd  of 


FRANCISCO   GOMEZ   TORO. 

Son  of  General  Gomez. 


202  COLUMBIA'S   WAR    FOR   CUBA. 

10,000  people.  The  Missouri  Pacific  transported  the  train  to  St.  L,ouis. 
The  Wabash  took  it  in  charge  there  and  delivered  it  to  the  Delaware, 
Lackawanna  &  Western  at  Buffalo,  and  the  latter  road  will  deliver  it  to 
Stephen  E.  Barton,  chairman  of  the  Central  Cuban  Relief  Committee  in 
New  York.  The  transportation  is  free.  A  striking  feature  of  this 
magnificent  donation  is  that  the  bulk  of  it  came  from  sections  of  Nebraska 
that  were,  three  years  ago,  the  recipients  of  bounty  from  generous  friends 
in  the  East. 

Thus  during  these  dark  days  of  dire  distress,  in  her  tender,  sympa- 
thetic, generous  dealings  with  the  children  of  sorrow  in  the  island  so  near 
our  shores,  did  America  give  to  the  world  a  beautiful  illustration  of  the 
parable  of  the  good  Samaritan,  that  fell  from  the  lips  of  the  Burden-Bearer 
of  humanity. 


CARLOS  GARCIA,  JUSTO  GARCIA, 

Sons  of  General  Cali.vto  Garcia. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


America  in  the  Orient, 


(203) 


CHAPTER  IX. 

AMERICA  IN  THE  ORIENT. 

Manila  a  picturesque  city— Taxed  with  no  returns— Privateering  and  neutral 
rights— Spain  defines  contraband  ot  war — President  McKinley's  Proclamation 
on  same  subject — What  a  privateer  is — The  right  of  search — America's 
marines — Commodore  Dewey  entering  the  Bay  of  Manila — Daring  attack  on 
Spanish  ships  under  the  guns  of  the  forts — Annihilation  of  Spain's  proud 
fleet — A  torrent  of  iron  hail  on  the  forts — Splendid  marksmanship  of  the  United 
States  gunners— Dewey  fighting  under  disadvantages. 

ANILA  is  a  picturesque  city,  about  the  size  of  San 
Francisco,  and  is  built  on  both  sides  of  the  Passig  River, 
which  is  navigable  to  its  source.  The  old  city  which 
was  built  only  on  the  left  side  of  the  river  is  partly  stand- 
ing ;  and  some  of  the  stone  wall  which  was  built  around  it  over  two 
hundred  years  ago  is  still  to  be  seen.  The  Cathedral,  monasteries 
and  the  government  offices  are  all  in  old  Manila,  while  the  business 
quarter,  the  foreign  shipping  houses,  the  banks,  stores  and  custom 
houses  are  in  Binondo,  on  the  other  side  of  the  river.  The  fashion- 
able promenade  is  located  between  the  walls  and  the  shore  ;  and 
here,  especially  during  the  afternoons,  could  have  been  seen  hun- 
dreds of  equipages  dashing  along,  and  thousands  of  pedestrians 
enjoying  the  invigorating  sea-breezes.  The  Manila  houses  are  of 
special  interest.  They  are  built  of  stone  ;  no  window  glass  is  used 
in  their  construction,  and  the  light  is  introduced  into  the  rooms, 
when  the  doors  are  closed,  by  translucent  oyster  shells,  which  are 
cut  into  squares  so  small  that  a  window  eight  feet  by  four  will 
contain  250  of  them.  These  glazed  windows  are  found  to  soften  the 
bright  light  and  temper  the  fierce  glare  of  the  sun  more  effectively 
than  the  ordinary  glass. 

Spain  has  boasted  of  the  fact  that  the  foreign  trade  of  Manila 
amounted  to  $35,000,000  a  year,  comprising  an  export  of  over 
$8,000,000  of  hemp,  $6,000,000  of  sugar,  and  $2,000,000  of  tobacco. 
But  under  a  more  enlightened  government  the  amount  of  business 

(205) 


206 


COLUMBIA'S    WAR    FOR   CUBA. 


would  be  greatly  increased.  On  the  question  of  the  unjust  taxation 
that  is  imposed  upon  the  Philippines,  we  gather  the  following  facts- 
from  Mr.  Dana  C.  Worcester,  who  is  the  best  authority  on  the  subject : 
"  In  some  cases  the  poll  tax  amounts  to  $25  a  year,  and  women 
have  to  pay  it  as  well  as  men.  The  Chinese  pay  a  special  tax. 
There 'are  taxes  on  stores  and  shops,  on  weights  and  measures,  on 
house  property,  taverns,  and  the  smallest  factories.  A  man  must  pay 
a  tax  for  the  privilege  of  killing  his  own  buffalo  or  pig  for  meat,  or 
of  owning  a  horse,  or  of  pressing  oil  out  of  his  cocoanuts.  For  the 

collection  of  these  taxes  Spanish 
ingenuity  has  revived  the  plan 
which  was  in  use  in  France  before 
the  fermie  s  generaux  came  into-, 
vogue.  For  each  town  or  district 
a  tax  collector  is  appointed  by  the 
governor  of  the  province.  He  is 
called  a  gobernadorcillo,  and  he  is 
responsible  for  the  estimated 
amount  which  his  district  should 
pay  in  taxes,  so  that  if  collections 
should  fall  short  he  must  make 
them  good  out  of  his  own  pocket. 
He  has  under  him  a  number  of 
deputy  collectors  known  as  cabezas, 
each  of  whom  collects  the  taxes  of 
from  forty  to  sixty  taxpayers,  and 
is  personally  responsible  for  the 
amount  expected  from  each.  If 
they  fail  to  pay  up,  he  distrains  their  property  and  sells  it ;  if  the 
proceeds  of  the  sale  fail  to  cover  the  indebtedness,  the  delinquent 
debtors  are  imprisoned  or  deported.  At  Siquidor  Mr.  Worcester  saw 
a  melancholy  procession  of  forty-four  men  who  had  lost  houses,  cattle 
and  lands,  and  who  still  owed  sums  ranging  from  $2.00  to  $40.00 ;. 
they  were  being  sent  prisoners  to  Bohol,  and  their  families  were  left 
to  shift  for  themselves. 

"  The  natives  get  little  or  nothing  in  return  for  this  frightful  burden 
of  taxation.     The  courts  of  justice  are  a  farce ;  the  judge  makes  no- 


ADMIRAL  GEORGE  DEWEY, 

"  The  Hero  of  Manila." 


AMERICA   IN   THE   ORIENT. 


207 


secret  of  his  venality.  In  a  few  towns  there  are  a  few  schools.  In 
the  villages  and  in  the  country  there  are  none.  There  are  no 
roads  which  are  passable  except  at  the  dry  season,  and  then  only  by 
buffalo  sheds.  In  the  rainy  season  intercourse  ceases.  There  are  no 
bridges.  Now  and  then  a  military  bridge  is  built  by  an  enterprising 
general.  No  attempt  is  made  to  repair  it,  and  it  soon  falls  into  decay. 
Thus  wherever  it  is  possible  people  travel  and  send  their  produce  to 
market  by  boat.  Lots  of  brigands  have  been  shot  or  hanged,  but 


U.    S.    CRUISER    "  OLYMPIA." 

Admiral  Dewey's  Flagship  in  the  Manila  Battle. 

brigandage  still  flourishes  at  the  Laguna  de  Bay,  close  to  Manila;  and 
the  island  of  Mindoro,  at  the  mouth  of  Manila  Bay,  is  a  safe  refuge 
for  pirates  and  cut-throats.  Natives  who  travel  cannot  protect 
themselves,  for  no  one  can  have  a  weapon  in  his  possession  without 
procuring  a  license,  and  that  is  expensive.  The  weight  of  taxation 
is  aggravated  by  the  rapacity  of  the  governors.  When  General 
Weyler  was  Governor-General  he  received  a  salary  of  $40,000  a  year, 


208  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

but  it  was  said  that  the  calls  upon  his  purse  for  entertainments  and 
charities  left  him  no  savings  at  the  end  of  the  year.  Nevertheless, 
at  the  close  of  his  term  he  had  lying  to  his  credit  in  the  banks  of 
London  and  Paris  a  sum  which  Madrid  politicians  variously  estimated 
at  from  $1,000,000  to  $4,000,000.  How  he  managed  to  accumulate 
so  large  a  fortune  may  be  inferred  from  an  anecdote  which  was 
current  talk  at  Manila.  He  was  succeeded  by  General  Desptiyol, 
who,  strange  to  say,  was  an  honest  man.  He  had  no  sooner  taken 
Ijis  seat  in  the  gubernatorial  office  than  he  was  visited  by  one  of  the 
richest  Chinese  merchants  at  Manila.  Behind  the  Chinese  came 
servants  bearing  bags  which  contained  $10,000  in  silver  coins.  This 
trifle  the  merchant  begged  the  new  Governor  to  accept  as  a  slight 
token  of  his  consideration.  He  was  mightily  astonished  when  the 
new  official  promptly  knocked  him  down." 

Privateering  and   Neutral   Rights. 

As  we  have  entered  upon  a  war  which  will,  doubtless,  be  largely 
a  naval  duel,  national  and  international  interest  is  directed  especially 
to  the  question  of  privateering  and  neutral  rights.  On  April  24, 
Spain  made  certain  "  absolute  reserves "  in  a  decree  which  she 
promulgated.  It  reads  thus  :" 

"  We  have  observed  with  the  strictest  fidelity  the  principles  of  i 
international  law  and  have  shown  the  most  scrupulous  respect  for 
morality  and  the  right  of  government.  The  government  is  of  the  • 
opinion  that  the  fact  of  not  having  adhered  to  the  Declaration  of 
Paris  does  not  exempt  us  from  the  duty  of  respecting  the  principles 
therein  enunciated.  The  principle  Spain  unquestionably  refused  to 
admit  then  was  the  abolition  of  privateering.  The  government 
now  considers  it  most  indispensable  to  make  absolute  reserves  on 
this  point,  in  order  to  maintain  our  liberty  of  action  and  uncontested 
right  to  have  recourse  to  privateering  when  we  consider  it  expedient, 
first,  by  organizing  immediately  a  force  of  cruisers,  auxiliary  to  the 
navy,  which  will  be  composed  of  vessels  of  our  mercantile  marine 
and  with  equal  distinction  in  the  work  of  our  navy. 

"  Clause  /. — "  The  state  of  war  existing  between  Spain  and  the 
United  States  annuls  the  treaty  of  peace  and  amity  of  October  27, 


AMERICA   IN   THE   ORIENT. 


209 


1795,  and  the  protocol  of  January  12,  1877,  and  all  other  agreements, 
treaties,  or  conventions  in  force  between  the  two  countries. 

"  Clause  2. — From  the  publication  of  these  presents,  thirty  days 
are  granted  to  all  ships  of  the  United  States  anchored  in  our  harbors 
to  take  their  departure  free  of  hindrance. 

"  Clause  j. — Notwithstanding  that  Spain  has  not  adhered  to 
the  Declaration  of  Paris,  the  government,  respecting  the  principles 


Copyrighted,  1893,  by  J.  8.  Johnston. 

u.  s.  CRUISER  "BALTIMORE," 
Of  Admiral  Dewey 's  Asiatic  Squadron. 

of  the  law  of  nations,  proposes  to  observe    and   hereby  orders  to  be 
observed,  the  following  regulations  of  maritime  law  : 

"  First. — Neutral   flags   cover   the  enemy's  merchandise   except 
contraband  of  war. 

"  Second. — Neutral  merchandise,  except  contraband  of  war,  is  not 
seizable  under  the  enemy's  flag. 

"  Third. — A  blockade    to    be  obligatory  must  be  effective,  viz., 
it  must   be    maintained    with  sufficient    force   to  prevent  access  to 
enemy's  littoral. 
14 


210  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

"  Fourth. — The  Spanish  government,  upholding  its  right  to  grant 
letters  of  marque,  will  at  present  confine  itself  to  organizing,  with 
the  vessels  of  the  mercantile  marine,  a  force  of  auxiliary  cruisers, 
which  will  co-operate  with  the  new  navy,  according  to  the  needs  of 
the  campaign,  and  will  be  under  naval  control. 

"  Fifth. — In  order  to  capture  the  enemy's  ships  and  confiscate 
the  enemy's  merchandise  and  contraband  of  war  under  whatever 
form,  the  auxiliary  cruisers  will  exercise  the  right  of  search  on  the 
high  seas  and  in  the  waters  under  the  enemy's  jurisdiction,  in  accord- 
ance with  international  law  and  the  regulations,  which  will  be  pub- 
lished. 

"  Sixth. — Included  in  contraband  of  war  are  weapons,  ammuni- 
tion, equipments,  engines,  and  '  in  general  all  the  appliances  used  in 
war.' 

"Seventh. — To  be  regarded  and  judged  as  pirates,  with  all  the 
rigor  of  law,  are  captains,  masters,  officers,  and  two-thirds  of  the 
crew  of  the  vessels  which,  not  being  American,  shall  commit  acts  of 
war  against  Spain,  even  if  provided  with  letters  of  marque  issued  by 
the  United  States." 

The  fourth  is  the  most  important  clause,  in  which  Spain  main- 
tains the  right  to  grant  letters  of  marque,  which  right  she  reserved 
to  herself  in  her  note  of  May  16,  1857,  contained  in  her  reply  to 
France. 

Spain  defines  contraband  of  war  as  "  cannon,  quick-firing  guns, 
shells,  rifles,  all  patterns  of  cutting  and  thrusting  weapons  and  arms 
of  precision,  bullets,  bombs,  grenades,  fulminates,  capsules,  fuses, 
powder,  sulphur,  dynamite,  and  explosives  of  all  kinds,  as  well  as 
uniforms,  straps,  pack-saddles,  and  equipment  for  artillery  and 
cavalry,  marine  engines,  and  in  general  all  appliances  used  in  war.'* 

The  government  reserves  liberty  of  action  relative  to  the 
question  of  coal  being  contraband  of  war. 

President  McKinley's  proclamation  on  the  same  subject  (dated 
April  26)  officially  declares  against  privateering,  and  adheres  to  the 
rules  of  the  Declaration  of  Paris : 

"  Whereas,  It  being  desirable  that  such  war  should  be  conducted 
upon  principles  in  harmony  with  the  present  views  of  nations  and 
sanctioned  by  their  recent  practice,  it  has  already  been  announced 


AMERICA   IN   THE   ORIENT. 


211 


that  the  policy  of  this  government  will  be  not  to  resort  to  privateer- 
ing, but  to  adhere  to  the  rules  of  the  Declaration  of  Paris : 

"  Now,  therefore,  I,  William  McKinley,  President  of  the  United 
States  of  America,  by  virtue  of  the  power  vested  in  me  by  the  Con- 
stitution and  the  laws,  do  hereby  declare  and  proclaim  : 

"  i.  The  neutral  flag  covers  enemy's  goods,  with  the  exception 
of  contraband  of  war. 

"  2.  Neutral  goods  not  contraband  of  war  are  not  liable  to 
confiscation  under  the  enemy's  flag. 

"  3.   Blockades,  in  order  to  be  binding,  must  be  effective. 


A  STREET   JN   MANILA. 

"  4.  Spanish  merchant  vessels  in  any  port  or  places  within  the 
United  States,  shall  be  allowed  till  May  21,  1898,  inclusive,  for 
loading  their  cargoes  and  departing  from  such  ports  or  places ;  and 
such  Spanish  merchant  vessels,  if  met  at  sea  by  any  United  States 
ship,  shall  be  permitted  to  continue  their  voyage  if,  on  examination 
of  their  papers,  it  shall  appear  that  their  cargoes  were  taken  on  board 
before  the  expiration  of  the  above  term  ;  provided,  that  nothing 
herein  contained  shall  apply  to  Spanish  vessels  having  on  board  any 
officer  in  the  military  or  naval  service  of  the  enemy,  or  any  coal 


212  COLUMBIA'S   WAR    FOR   CUBA. 

(except  such  as  may  be  necessary  for  their  voyage),  or  any  other 
article  prohibited,  or  contraband  of  war,  or  any  dispatch  of  or  to  the 
Spanish  government. 

"  5.  Any  Spanish  merchant  vessel  which,  prior  to  April  21,  1898, 
shall  have  sailed  from  any  foreign  port,  bound  for  any  port  or  place 
in  the  United  States,  shall  be  permitted  to  enter  such  port  and  to 
discharge  her  cargo,  and  afterward  forthwith  to  depart  without 
molestation ;  and  any  such  vessel,  if  met  at  sea  by  any  United 


U.    S.    CRUISER    "  RALEIGH," 

Of  the  Asiatic  Squadron. 

States  ship,  shall  be  permitted  to  continue  her  voyage  to  any  port 
not  blockaded. 

"6.  The  right  of  search  is  to  be  exercised  with  strict  regard  for 
the  rights  of  neutrals,  and  the  voyages  of  mail  steamers  are  not  to  be 
interfered  with  except  on  the  clearest  grounds  of  suspicion  of  a 
violation  of  law  in  respect  of  contraband  or  blockade." 

As  to  what   is   meant  by   "Privateering"   and   the   "Right  of 


AMERICA    IN   THE   ORIENT.  213 

Search,"    we    quote  from  the    Boston  Herald  and    the    New  York 

Sun  : 

What  a    Privateer  Is. 

It  is  a  ship  owned  and  manned  by  private  persons,  but  specially- 
empowered  by  a  State  to  wage  war  against  that  State's  enemy  at  sea. 
The  commissions  from  a  government  granting  this  war  power  to 
private  vessels  are  called  letters  of  marque.  Privateers  are  generally 
too  light  in  their  armament,  for  they  are  equipped  at  private  expense, 
to  fight  warships  of  a  regular  navy,  and  they  confine  their  operations 
almost  exclusively  to  capturing  the  enemy's  defenceless  merchant- 
men. Privateering  is  generally  conducted  for  the  money  there  is  in 
it,  since  when  an  enemy's  ship  and  cargo  are  captured  they  become 
very  largely  the  property  of  the  privateersmen.  History  has  proven 
that  the  attitude  assumed  by  the  government  of  the  United  States  in 
reference  to  this  question  was  a  wise  one.  That  the  form  which  we 
wished  to  have  adopted  did  not  include  the  right  to  ignore  the* 
requirements  of  a  blockade.  But  our  position,  whether  taken  with 
entire  good  faith  or  taken,  as  some  assumed,  on  the  ground  that  we 
did  not  care  to  sign  the  proposition  as  drawn  up,  and  thought  this 
would  be  a  good  way  of  relieving  ourselves  of  the  odium  of  not 
doing  so,  because  we  were  well  aware  that  the  great  governments  of 
the  world  would  not  accept  our  amendment,  relieved  us  from  the 
necessity  of  imposing  any  new  restriction. 

For  the  last  forty  years  we  have  been  at  liberty,  if  engaged  in 
war,  to  send  out  privateers  and  to  seize  the  goods  of  an  enemy,  even 
though  these  might  be  on  board  the  vessels  of  a  neutral,  and  this 
without  regard  to  whether  these  goods  were  or  were  not  contraband 
of  war.  It  would  probably  have  been  better  for  us  to  have  signed 
the  declaration  in  1856,  as  in  this  way  we  might  have  avoided  the 
misfortune  that  came  to  us  through  the  "  Alabama,"  the  "  Florida," 
and  other  Confederate  privateers. 

The  Right  of  Search. 

Spain's  proclamation  of  war  declares  that  her  auxiliary  cruisers, 
organized  out  of  the  mercantile  marine,  will,  like  her  regular  navy, 
"exercise  the  right  of  search  on  the  high  seas  and  in  the  waters 
under  the  enemy's  jurisdiction." 


2I4 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


There  is  no  doubt  that  the  right  of  searching  neutral  merchant 
ships  in  such  seas  and  waters  is  accorded  to  a  belligerent  by  interna- 
tional law.  The  reason  is  that,  until  the  belligerent  searches,  he  can 
not  know  whether  there  is  any  contraband  of  war  in  the  cargo,  or 
what  the  destination  of  that  cargo  is.  In  other  words,  the  right  of 
search  is  a  corollary  of  the  conceded  right  of  maritime  capture ;  and 
yet,  being  a  burden  to  the  neutral  ship,  it  must  be  conducted  with 
asj  little  harshness  as  is  possible,  and  with  neither  insult  nor  injury 
to  the  neutral.  If,  however,  the  neutral  neglects  the  customary 


U.   S.    CRUISER   "  BOSTON," 

Of  the  Asiatic  Squadron. 

warning  by  signals,  hailing,  or  a  gun,  to  heave  to,  and  resists  search 
by  a  lawful  cruiser,  it  is  liable  to  confiscation. 

War  vessels  of  neutrals  are,  of  course,  free  from  search,  because 
they  are  government  vessels,  and  because  they  do  not  carry  merchan- 
dise. But  a  mail  steamer  is  not  a  government  steamer  in  the  sense 
of  being  relieved  from  that  examination  of  its  papers  which  is  part 


AMERICA   IN   THE   ORIENT.  215 

of  the  right  to  search.  A  more  difficult  question  to  determine  is 
whether  a  neutral  merchant  vessel  under  the  convoy  of  one  of  its 
government's  warships  is  exempt  from  search,  and  hence  that 
matter  is  often  regulated  by  treaty.  Our  country,  true  to  its  policy 
of  favoring  neutral  trade,  has  provided  for  such  exemption  of 
convoyed  ships  in  more  than  a  dozen  treaties  with  other  States,  and 
France  has  taken  the  same  ground  in  various  treaties,  while  Germany, 
Austria,  Italy,  and  other  European  powers,  Spain  notably  among 
them,  provide  that  the  word  of  the  officer  commanding  the  warship 
shall  be  taken  in  place  of  search.  Our  navy  regulations  instruct 
officers  not  to  allow  ships  under  their  protection  to  be  searched,  and 
yet  to  satisfy  themselves  that  no  contraband  is  being  carried  to  a 
belligerent  port.  Great  Britain,  unlike  other  nations,  insists  on  the 
right  of  search  in  such  cases  ;  but,  so  far  as  the  present  war  is  con- 
cerned, it  is  enough  to  know  that  both  Spain  and  our  country  favor 
the  exemption  of  neutral  ships  under  neutral  convoy. 

If  search  reveals  cause  for  detention,  the  captured  vessel  must 
be  sent  for  adjudication  to  some  port  as  soon  as  possible,  and  if  this 
can  not  be  done  at  all,  the  neutral  must  be  released. 

America's    Marines. 

One  of  the  oldest  fighting  organizations  in  the  country  is  the 
United  States  Marine  Corps  ;  and  in  all  of  our  wars  it  has  made  a  proud 
record.  Among  the  first  acts  of  the  Continental  Congress  was  the 
organization  of  two  battalions  of  American  marines ;  and  it  was 
early  in  the  Revolution  that  Captain  Nichols  led  a  detachment  of 
marines  and  captured  the  forts  in  the  Bahamas.  Decatur's  thrilling 
experience  during  the  bombardment  of  Tripoli  shows  the  pluck  of 
the  American  fighting  sailor.  He  boarded  one  of  the  Tripolitan 
gunboats  and  engaged  the  captain  in  a  hand-to-hand  sword  duel,  and 
one  of  the  enemy  coming  up  behind  would  have  cleaved  Decatur's 
skull  with  his  sword,  had  not  a  marine  interposed  his  arm,  which 
saved  the  life  of  Decatur,  but  which  was  nearly  severed  from  the 
body.  Lieutenant  Trip,  of  the  Vixen,  in  the  same  battle,  performed 
a  similar  act ;  and  while  he  was  engaged  in  a  personal  conflict  with 
the  commander  of  a  Tripolitan  gunboat,  he  would  have  been  killed 
by  a  Turk,  had  not  Sergeant  Meredith  used  his  bayonet  with  fatal 


216  COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 

effect.  During  this  combat  at  Tripoli  our  marines  covered  them- 
selves with  honor  ;  and  when  Lieutenant  O'Bannon,  with  the  aid  of 
Midshipman  Mann,  hanled  down  the  ensign  of  the  enemy  and 
hoisted  the  stars  and  stripes  on  the  fortress  of  the  old  world,  the  last 
brave  act  of  a  glorious  triumph  occurred.  The  war  of  1812,  the 
Mexican  war,  the  Florida-Indian  contest,  and  the  hot  com  bat  between 
the  "Merrimac"  and  the  "Cumberland,"  all  give  evidence  of  the 
heroic  courage  of  the  Marine  Corps.  When  we  had  our  trouble  with 
Corea,  although  the  Coreans  fought  bravely  to  the  last  moment, 
their  flag  was  captured  by  the  marines  ;  and  Commander  Kimberly 
in  his  report  of  the  battle,  used  these  words  :  "  The  honor  belongs  to 
the  marines  for  first  landing  and  last  leaving  the  shore.  Chosen  as 
the  advance  guard  on  account  of  their  steadiness  and  discipline,  their 
whole  behavior  on  the  march  and  in  the  assault  proved  that  the  con- 
fidence in  them  had  not  been  misplaced. " 

Lord  Charles  Beresford,  of  the  English  ship  "  Condor,"  after  the 
outbreak  in  Alexandria  in  1882,  stated  that  order  could  not  have  been 
restored  had  it  not  been  for  the  "  smart,  faithful  force  "  of  the  Ameri- 
can marines ;  and  Admiral  Jouett  wrote  to  Colonel  Heywood,  after 
the  Panama  expedition  in  1885,  this  well-deserved  compliment: 
"  The  marine  battalion  has  been  constantly  at  the  front,  where  dan- 
ger and  disease  were  sure  to  come,  first  and  always.  When  a  conflict 
has  seemed  imminent  I  have  relied  with  implicit  confidence  on  that 
body  of  tried  soldiers."  The  present  war  may  call  the  United  States 
Marine  Corps  to  defend  the  flag  of  freedom,  and  if  this  occurs  the 
record  of  the  past  will  be  repeated  in  the  present. 

The  Great  Victory  at  Manila. 

The  news  of  the  great  victory  at  Manila  was  published  in  the 
American  journals  of  May  2.  Strangely  enough,  it  came  by  way  of 
Spain.  The  authorities  at  Manila  had  control  of  the  cable,  and  were 
thus  able  to  send  to  Madrid  news  of  the  disaster  which  had  befallen 
the  Spanish  arms,  while  the  victor  on  board  his  ships  was  cut  off  from 
communication  with  his  government.  It  was  a  curious  irony  of  fate 
that  people  who  did  not  want  such  news  should  get  it  so  long  before 
the  people  to  whom  it  was  welcome.  The  only  way  by  which  Ad- 
miral Dewey  could  report  his  splendid  triumph  was  by  detaching  a 


218 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


vessel  from  his  small  fleet  and  sending  it  to  the  nearest  cable  station, 
which  is  Hong  Kong,  six  hundred  miles  away.  The  "  McCulloch  " 
was  selected  for  this  errand.  She  reached  Hong  Kong  safely,  and  by 
four  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  May  7  the  first  official  news  was 


PORT  OF  MANILA,  SCENE  OF  THE  GREAT  NAVAL   BATTLE  OF  MAY  I,  1898. 

received  at  the  Navy  Department.     Briefly  and  simply  the  victorious 
officer  told  the  glorious  news  : 

"  MANILA,  May  /. 

"  Squadron'arrived  at  Manila  at  daybreak  this  morning.  Imme- 
diately ^engaged  the  enemy  and  destrovel  the  following  Spanish 
vessels":  ''Reina  Cristina,'  '  Castilla,'  'Don  Antonio  de  Ulloa,' 
*  Isla  de  Luzon,'  'Isla  de  Cuba,'  'General  Lezo,'  'Marques  del 


AMERICA   IN   THE   ORIENT. 


219 


Duero,'  '  Correo,'  '  Velasco,'  '  Isla  de  Mindanao,'  a  transport  and 
water  battery  at  Cavite.  The  squadron  is  uninjured,  and  only  a  few 
men  are  slightly  wounded.  Only  means  of  telegraphing  is  to 
American  Consul  at  Hong  Kong.  I  shall  communicate  with  him. 

"  DEWEY." 

This  dispatch  was  evidently  written  Sunday,  May  i,  the  day  of 
the  battle,  but  something  must  have  occurred  to  delay  the  departure 


is* 


A  STREET  MARKET  IK   MANILA. 


of  the  "  McCulloch,"  for  on  Wednesday,  May  4,  she  was  still  at 
Manila  and  Dewey  gave  her  a  later  dispatch  to  carry  to  Hong  Kong. 
This  was  as  follows  : 

"  CAVITE,  May  4,  1898. 
"  LONG,  Secretary  Navy  : 

"I  have  taken  possession  of  the  naval  station  at  Cavite,  Philippine 
Islands,  and  destroyed  its  fortifications.    Have  destroyed  fortifications 


220  COLUMBIA'S   WAR    FOR   CUBA. 

at  the  bay  entrance,  paroling  the  garrison.  I  control  the  bay  com- 
pletely, and  can  take  the  city  at  any  time.  The  squadron  in  excel- 
lent health  and  spirits.  The  Spanish  loss  not  fully  known,  but  very 
heavy.  One  hundred  and  fifty  killed,  including  the  captain  of  the 
"  Reina  Cristina."  I  am  assisting  in  protecting  the  Spanish  sick  and 
wounded.  Two  hundred  and  fifty  sick  and  wounded  in  hospital 
within  our  lines.  Much  excitement  at  Manila.  Will  protect  foreign 
residents.  "  DEWEY." 

To  these  modest  dispatches  Secretary  Long  sent  the  following 
reply,  which  must  have  been  very  gratifying  to  the  gallant  officer  : 


"  WASHINGTON,  D.  C.,  May  7, 
'"  DEWEY,  Manila  : 

"  The  President,  in  the  name  of  the  American  people,  thanks  you 
and  your  officers  and  men  for  your  splendid  achievement  and  over- 
whelming victory.  In  recognition  he  has  appointed  you  acting 
admiral,  and  will  recommend  a  vote  of  thanks  to  you  by  Congress  as 
a  foundation  for  further  promotion.  "  LONG." 

Further  details  of  the  fight  were  obtained  by  the  Associated 
Press  correspondent  at  Hong  Kong,  from  the  "  McCulloch's  "  officers, 
and  were  given  in  a  dispatch,  from  which  the  following  is  an  extract  : 

"  The  squadron  entered  the  bay  and  arrived  off  Corregidor 
Island  on  Saturday  night,  April  30.  It  appears  that  the  first  reports 
that  the  Americans  entered  without  being  seen  were  erroneous,  for 
the  fort  on  Corregidor  Island  fired  three  shots  and  then  became  silent. 
The  Americans  were  prepared  for  any  contingency  that  might  arise, 
and  the  gun  crews  and  other  men  stood  at  their  stations,  eager  and 
alert,  until  the  ships  went  into  action. 

"Early  on  Sunday  morning  the  Spanish  fleet,  numbering  four- 
teen vessels,  was  sighted  off  Cavite.  It  was  just  about  daybreak 
when  the  engagement  began. 

"  Passing  in  front  of  Manila  the  American  line  went  to  the 
southeast  to  within  range  of  the  ships  and  Cavite  forts.  The  first 
guns  that  the  enemy  fired  were  powerful  enough  to  send  shells 
whizzing  above  our  vessels  at  a  distance'of  four  and  a  half  miles. 
The  Manila  batteries  fired  at  the  fleet  as  it  passed,  but  Dewey  did 


AMERICA    IN   THE   ORIENT. 


not  reply  to  them,  for  he  feared  that  he  would  do  damage  to  the  city 
and  its  inhabitants. 

"  Commodore  Dewey  ordered  his  squadron  to  close  in  on  the 
land  batteries  at  Cavite  and  the  Spanish  warships,  at  once  opening  a 
heavy  fire.  The  "  Olympia  "  led  the  way,  followed  by  the  "  Baltimore," 
"  Raleigh,"  "  Petrel"  "Concord"  and  "  Boston  "  in  this  order.  As 
each  ship  came  into  range 
it  joined  in  the  bombard- 
ment which  the  "Olympia" 
had  begun. 

"  When  we  began  firing 
on  the  ships,  the  "  Reina 
Cristina,"  on  which  the 
Spanish  Admiral's  flag  was 
flying,  was  a  little  in  ad- 
vance of  the  other  vessels. 
Next  came  the  protected 
cruiser  "Castilla,"  and 
stretched  out  in  a  line 
toward  the  sea,  with  one 
flank  resting  near  the  forts, 
were  the  other  vessels  of  the 
Spanish  fleet.  During  most 
of  the  fight  the  ships  re- 
mained under  way,  but 
maintained  the  same  rela- 
tive position.  When  we  at- 
tacked the  enemy  our  vessels  were  moving  at  the  speed  of  eight 
miles  an  hour. 

"  The  "  Olympia"  fired  the  first  shot,  at  5.41  a.  in.  It  was  an  eight- 
inch  shell  from  a  gun  in  the  forward  turret,  and  the  first  shot  hit  its 
mark.  Some  of  the  enemy's  shots  came  very  near  hitting  our  vessels 
One  large  shell,  coming  direct  for  the  forward  bridge  of  the  flagship,  fell 
within  less  than  four  rods  from  the  ship.  Another  shot  just  grazed 
the  bridge,  and  later  a  shot  passed  beneath  the  place  where  Commo- 
dore Dewey  was  standing  and  gouged  a  small  piece  out  of  the  deck. 

"  Before  a  shot  was  fired  from  Cavite  two  submarine  mines  were 


A    HALF-CASTE   WOMAN    OF   MANILA. 


222 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


exploded  a  little  ahead  of  the  flagship.  It  was  not  yet  clear  daylight, 
and  the  Spaniards  had  evidently  misjudged  the  position  of  the  hostile 
fleet.  No  harm  was  done  to  onr  ships,  but  the  mines  were  very 
powerful,  and  immense  columns  of  water  were  thrown  high  into  the 

air.  It  is  probable  that  no 
other  mines  had  been  placed. 
At  any  rate  only  those  two 
explosions  occurred. 

"  The  morning  was  very 
hot,  for  this  is  the  last  month 
of  the  hot  season  in  the 
Philippines,  and  many  of  the 
men  wore  no  clothing  at  all 
excepting  their  trousers. 
There  were  about  450  men 
at  the  guns  of  our  fleet,  and 
most  of  them,  as  they  dis- 
charged the  great  machines,, 
cried:  'Remember  the 
Maine,'  which  was  the 
watchword  of  the  battle. 

"  In  all,  fourteen  Span- 
ish vessels  took  part  in  the 
engagement,  and  after  fight- 
ing several  hours  the  entire 
fleet  was  at  the  bottom  of 
the  bay.  In  addition  to  the 
vessels  named  ir  Dewey's 
dispatch  as  being  destroyed,, 
the  transport  '  Isla  da  Mindanao '  and  another  vessel,  the  name  of 
which  could  not  be  ascertained,  were  sunk. 

"  The  land  batteries  had  heavier  guns  than  the  fleet,  and  replied 
to  our  fire  without  cessation.  The  cannonading  was  terrible,  and 
our  ships  did  great  execution.  Soon  some  of  the  enemy's  ships 
were  burning  and  several  magazines  on  their  fleet  exploded,  but  the 
forts  were  still  uninjured. 

"  Then  the  '  Baltimore  '  was  ordered  to  silence  the  strongest  fort,. 


A    LADY    OF    MANILA. 


AMERICA   IN   THE   ORIENT.  223 

which  occupied  a  position  at  Canaco  Point.  The  fort  replied  with 
great  vigor  to  its  fire.  The  '  Petrel '  gave  her  exclusive  attention  to 
the  smaller  fort  near  by  and  went  close  inshore.  The  other  ships 
aided  in  subduing  the  forts,  and  kept  firing  also  on  the  ships  that 
were  not  yet  entirely  out  of  the  fight.  The  accuracy  of  the  American 
guns  could  not  be  excelled,  and  under  the  tremendous  bombardment 
the  Spanish  fire  gradually  weakened,  and  fifty  minutes  after  noon  a 
white  flag  was  run  up  over  what  was  left  of  the  Cavite  forts. 

"  On  Monday  the  American  squadron  went  up  the  bay  to  Manila 
and  anchored.  No  landing  parties  were  sent  ashore,  Commodore 
Dewey  deeming  it  inexpedient  to  attempt  to  actually  hold  the  city 
until  reinforcements  are  forwarded  to  him.  Meantime  the  city  is 
under  complete  command  of  the  guns  of  the  fleet,  and  were  a 
bombardment  deemed  necessary  the  ships  are  in  the  most  advan- 
tageous positions  to  destroy  the  place. 

"  There  is  a  strong  force  of  insurgents  back  of  the  city,  and 
some  fears  were  entertained  on  board  the  warships  that  they  would 
attempt  to  enter  the  city  and  massacre  the  Spaniards.  This  Com- 
modore Dewey  is  firmly  determined  to  prevent,  and  should  the 
insurgents  try  anything  of  the  kind  they  will  find  themselves  pitted 
against  the  American  bluejackets  and  marines,  for  Commodore 
Dewey,  should  the  occasion  arise,  will  land  all  his  available  force  for 
the  protection  of  the  residents  of  the  city." 

Probably  never  before  in  history  was  so  great  a  victory  won  at  a 
cost  so  small.  Yet  the  danger  was  not  small.  The  correspondent 
of  the  New  York  Herald,  who  was  on  the  "  Olympia  "  with  Admiral 
Dewey,  says  :  "  The  '  Olympia'  was  struck  abreast  the  gun  in  the  ward- 
room by  a  shell  which  burst  outside,  doing  little  damage.  The 
signal  halyards  were  cut  from  Lieutenant  Brumby's  hand  on  the 
after  bridge.  A  shell  entered  the  '  Boston's '  port  quarter  and  burst 
in  Ensign  Dodridge's  stateroom,  starting  a  hot  fire,  and  fire  was  also 
caused  by  a  shell  which  burst  in  the  port  hammock  netting.  Both  these 
fires  were  quickly  put  out.  Another  shell  passed  through  the '  Boston's  * 
foremast  just  in  front  of  Captain  Wildes,  on  the  bridge.  One  shot 
struck  the  '  Baltimore '  and  passed  clean  through  her,  fortunately  hit- 
ting no  one.  Another  ripped  up  her  main  deck,  disabled  a  six-inch  gun 
andexploded  a  box  of  three-pounderammunition,  wounding  eightmen." 


CHAPTER  X. 


The  Geography  of  Cuba 


IS  (225) 


CHAPTER   X. 

THE  GEOGRAPHY  OF  CUBA. 

HE  following  interesting  statistics  regarding  Cuba  have 
been  translated  from  the  Geographical  Treatise  on  the 
Island  of  Cuba,  by  Dr.  D.  Manuel  Pruna,  Santa  Cruz, 
Havana,  1897  : 

Island  of  Cuba. — The  Island  of  Cuba,  which  is  the  largest  of 
the  islands  that  compose  the  Archipelago  of  the  Antilles,  constitutes 
a  Captainship-General  of  the  Spanish  Monarchy,  whose  chief  ruler 
is  the  Governor-Captain-General. 

Situation. — It  is  situated  in  the  Atlantic  Ocean  and  the  Sea  of 
the  Antilles,  between  the  two  Americas,  at  the  entrance  of  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico,  in  the  Torrid  Zone  and  near  the  Tropic  of  Cancer. 

Figiire  and  Dimensions. — Our  island  represents  the  irregular 
figure  of  a  plow,  extending  from  east  to  west.  It  is  1230  kilometers 
long,  200  wide  in  the  widest  part  and  40  in  the  narrowest. 

Surface  and  Population. — The  superficial  extent  is  estimated 
117,000  kilometers  square,  and  the  inhabitants  are  more  than  a 
million  and  a  half. 

Contour. — The  contour  is  3200  kilometers,  of  which  1500  pertain 
to  the  northern  coast  and  1700  to  the  southern.  There  are  magnifi- 
cent ports  and  1200  surrounding  islets. 

Boundaries. — On  the  north  is  the  Channel  of  Florida  and  the  old 
Channel  of  Bahama  ;  on  the  east,  the  Strait  of  Maist ;  on  the  south, 
the  Sea  of  the  Antilles,  and  on  the  west,  the  Strait  of  Yucatan  and  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico. 

Neighboring  Distances. — Cuba  is  near  the  continent  of  America, 
distant  from  Florida  177  kilometers ;  from  St.  Domingo  77  kilo- 
meters;  from  Jamaica  140  kilometers  ;  from  Yucatan  200  kilometers. 

Climate. — The  climate  of  Cuba  is  variable,  being  very  warm  and 
damp  in  the  rainy  season,  which  is  between  May  and  October  ;  and 
mild  and  dry,  the  rest  of  the  year. 

[(227) 


228 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


Language  and  Religion. — The  rich  and  majestic  Castilian 
language  is  spoken  all  over  the  island.  The  prevalent  religion  is 
the  Roman  Catholic. 

Civil  Territorial  Division. — Among  the  several  divisions  of  the 
island,  the  most  prominent  is  the  Civil  Government,  political  and 
administrative,  which  is  territorially  divided  into  three  districts 
known  as  the  Western,  the  Central  and  the  Eastern.  Each  district 
comprises  two  provinces,  divided  into  several  judicial  departments, 
and  these  are  subdivided  into  municipalities. 


MATANZAS,    WHOSE    KORTS   WERE   SILENCED    BY    REAR-ADMIRAL    SAMPSON'S     FLEET. 

District  Divisions. — Each  district  comprehends  two  provinces, 
as  follows :  The  Western  district  comprises  Pinar  del  Rio  and 
Havana  :  the  Central  embraces  Matanzas  and  Santa  Clara  ;  and  the 
Eastern,  Puerto  Principe  and  Santiago  de  Cuba. 

Provincial  Divisions. — Each  province  is  divided  into  several 
judicial  departments,  and  these  are  subdivided  into  municipalities,  as 
follows  : 

Province  of  Pinar  del  Rio. — This  province  is  divided  into  four 
departments,  whose  seats  of  government  are  :  Piuar  del  Rio,  San 


THE   GEOGRAPHY   OF   CUBA. 


229 


Christobel,  Guanajay  and  Guave,  dependent  on  which  are  twenty-five 
municipalities. 

Province  of  Havana. — This  province  is  divided  into  twelve 
departments,  six  of 
which  have  for  their 
seat  of  government 
the  capital  of  the 
province  and  the  re- 
maining departments 
have  for  their  seats  of 
government  the  towns 
of  Marianao,  Guana- 
bacoa,  Jaruco,  San  An- 
tonio de  los  Banos, 
Bejucal  y  Guines,  de- 
pendent on  which  are 
thirty-seven  m  u  n  i  c  i- 
palities. 

Province  of  Ma- 
tanzas. — This  prov- 
ince is  divided  into 
five  judicial  depart- 
ments, two  of  which 
have,  as  the  seat  of 
government,  the  cap- 
ital of  the  province, 
and  the  rest  have  their 
seats  of  government  in 
the  towns,  Cardenas, 
Alfonso  XII,  Colon, 
depending  on  which 
are  twenty-three  mu- 
nicipalities. 

Province  of  Santa 
Clara. — This  province 
is  divided  into  six  parts,  whose  seats  of  government  are  Santa 
Clara,  Sagua  la  Grande,  Remedies,  Cienfnegos,  Trinidad  and  Sancti 
Spirittis,  dependent  on  which  are  twenty-eight  municipalities. 


(230) 


THE   GEOGRAPHY   OF   CUBA. 


231 


Province  oj  Puerto  Principe. — This  province  is  divided  into 
three  judicial  departments,  two  of  which  have,  as  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment, the  capital  of  the  province,  and  the  third,  has  as  its  seat  of  gov- 
ernment, Moron,  dependent  on  which 
are  five  municipalities. 

Province  of  Santiago  de  Cuba. — 
This  province  is  divided  into  seven 
judicial  departments,  each  of  which  has 
as  its  seat  of  government  the  capital, 
Santiago  de  Cuba,  and  the  others,  the 
towns  of  Manzanillo,  Bayamo,  Holguin, 
Baracoa  and  Guantanamo,  dependent  on 
which  are  fourteen  municipalities. 

Economic  Division. — The  island  has 
a  general  direction  of  domestic  affairs 
in  Havana,  and  six  economic  administra- 
tions, one  in  each  provincial  capital. 

Judicial  Division. — The  island  has 
three  territorial  courts,  one  in  Havana, 
another  in  Matanzas,  and  the  other  in 
Santiago  de  Cuba;  on  which  depend 
thirty -seven  primary  courts,  and  on  these 
the  municipalities  established  in  the  de- 
partments. There  are  besides,  three 
criminal  courts  in  Pinar  del  Rio,  Santa 
Clara  and  Puerto  Principe. 

Maritime  Division. — As  to  the  mari- 
time department,  the  island  consists  of 
four  provinces,  namely,  Havana,  Nue- 
vitas,  Santiago  de  Cuba  and  Cienfuegos. 
The  command  is  confided  to  a  command- 
ant general,  chief  of  the  marine  station 
of  Havana,  having  also  captains  of  the 
port  and  adjutants  of  marines. 

Ecclesiastical  Division. — This     con- 
sists of  two  dioceses :  the  archbishopric  of  Cuba  and  the  bishopric  of 
Havana,  with  24  vicarships  and  200  parishes  between  them. 


232 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


Other  Divisions. — Although  without  official  character,  never- 
theless there  are  in  the  island,  three  departments,  named  Western, 
Central  and  Eastern. 

Also  there  are  the  Vuela  Arriba  (high  circuit)  and  Vuelta  Abajo 
(low  circuit)  both  belogning  to  Havana  ;  Cinco  Villas  (five  towns)  to 
the  territory  which  comprises  the  province  of  Santa  Clara  ;  Cam- 
aguey,  to  Puerto  Principe  and  Tierra  Adentro,  which  comprises  the 
region  between  Cienfuegos  and  Bayamo. 

Governor. — The  island  of  Cuba  is  governed  by  a  governor- 
captain-general  who  is  the  chief  magistrate,  especially  in  the  political 
and  military  economy.  Each  of  the  six  provinces  is  governed  by  a 
civil  governor. 

There  is  in  each  province  a  provincial  police  court,  on  which 
depends  varied  officers  of  this  kind,  whose  justices  are  the  local 
heads  of  their  administrative  departments. 


CHAPTER  XI. 


Hastening  to  the  End 


(233) 


CHAPTER  XI. 

HASTENING  TO  THE  END. 

Planning  to  intercept  the  Spanish  Fleet— Preparations  for  a  battle  of  giants  on 
the  open  sea— Congress  providing  sinews  of  war— Spain's  policy  changed 
by  the  Manila  disaster— Hysterical  appeals  for  intervention — The  United  States 
not  seeking  territory — Causes  of  Spain's  decadence — Natural  result  of 
avarice  and  cruelty  —A  specimen  proclamation — The  dynasty  menaced 
with  revolution. 

iE  victory  at  Manila  broke  the  backbone  of  the  war. 
Although  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  and  Rear-Admiral 
Sampson  kept  the  details  of  the  plans  of  operation  a  pro- 
found secret,  it  was  believed  that  the  Spanish  Atlantic 
fleet  would  not  be  allowed  to  approach  the  coast  of  the  United  States, 
and  that  the  enemy  would  be  met  on  the  high  seas  and  given  battle 
at  a  time  and  a  place  to  be  chosen  by  our  admiral.  It  was  wisely 
thought  that  it  would  be  a  point  gained  to  take  Spain's  fleet,  if  pos- 
sible, totally  unawares,  and  before  preparation  could  be  made  and 
before  it  was  possible  for  the  enemy  to  escape,  to  open  battle.  A 
censorship  of  telegrams  from  Key  West  was  established,  and  it  was 
impossible  to  get  news  direct  from  that  important  place. 

The  movements  of  both  fleets  were  a  mystery ;  Spain  was 
expected  to  combine  her  strength  in  a  desperate  effort  to  gain 
the  advantage  she  lost  at  the  Philippines, — the  "  Vizcaya," 
the  "  Almirante  Oquendo,"  the  "  Cristobal  Colon,"  the  "  Maria 
Teresa "  (all  first-class  cruisers),  the  torpedo  boat  destroyers, 
"  Furor,  "  "Terror"  and  "  Pluton,"  the  battleship  "  Pelayo,"  the 
first-class  cruisers,  "  Cardenal,  "  "  Cisneros,"  the  "  Emperador  Carlos 
V,"  the  "Giuseppe  Garibaldi,"  the  "Alfonso  XIIL,"  the  warships 
"  Numancia,"  "Vitoria,"  "  Destructor  "  and  several  auxiliary  cruisers 
and  torpedo  boats  could  all  be  brought  into  battle  array  ;  and  with 
the  magnificent  American  fleet,  a  desperate  struggle  would  follow. 

With  the  "  St.  Louis,"  "Harvard"  and  "Yale,"  with  a  number 
of  assistants,  doing  patrol  duty  along  the  Atlantic  shores,  and  being 

(235) 


236 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


alert  day  and  night,  for  the  smoke  of  the  enemy's  ships,  their  prompt 
discovery  would  no  doubt  be  made  as  they  came  into  our  waters. 

Commodore  Schley's  Flying  Squadron  remained  at  Hampton 
Roads  to  assist  the  northern  patrol  vessels  in  the  defence  of  the 
coast,  unless  the  enemy  appeared  at  an  unexpected  place,  and  it 
seemed  necessary  to  strike  their  warships  in  southeastern  waters. 

Pending  the  activity  at  sea,  Congress  was  not  idle  in  considering 
additional  war  measures.  Both  Houses  agreed  upon  the  Fortifications 


THE   UNITED   STATES   MARINE   HOSPITAL   AT   KEY   WEST,    FI.A. 

Here  the  wounded  sailors  from  the  battleship  '•'•Maine'"  were  quartered  until  fully 

convalescent. 

bill,  which  appropriates  over  $9,000,000  for  sea-coast  defences  ; 
estimates  were  made  of  $20,975,000  for  naval  deficiencies  in  addition 
to  the  regular  appropriations  already  made  ;  and  there  was  a  discussion 
of  the  wisdom  of  increasing  the  internal  revenue  taxes  by  $100,000,- 
ooo  to  obviate  the  necessity  of  raising  money  by  bonds. 

Every  movement  of   the  American  war  forces  was  studied  by 
those  at   the  helm   of   affairs.     The  earlv  seizure  of  Porto  Rico  was 


HASTENING   TO   THE   END. 


237 


decided  upon  ;  and  with  Havana  successfully  blockaded,  Spain  would 
be  deprived  entirely  of  a  base  of  supplies  on  this  side  of  the  ocean. 
The  defeat  of  the  Spanish  fleet  in  eastern  waters  had  caused  a  com- 
plete change  in  the  Mr  drid  war  policy  on  the  seas.  Up  to  this  time 
Spain  had  played  the  martyr,  assuming  the  role  of  a  deeply 
wronged  nation,  pursued  by  a  stronger  power  and  relying  implicitly, 
but  vainly,  upon  the 
European  powers  to 
help  her  in  the  day 
of  her  distress.  The 
Queen  Regent  made 
appeal  after  appeal 
to  the  Pope  and  the 
powers ;  the  Minis- 
ter of  War  dramati- 
cal ly  exclaimed, 
"  Would  to  God  we 
had  not  a  ship  west 
of  Spain ;  then  we 
would  say,  '  here  we 
are,  come  and  take 
us  ;'  and  there  con- 
tinued to  be  warlike 
manifestoes,  but  no 
warlike  acts.  But 
the  powers  did  not 
intervene  ;  and  now 
after  the  crushing 
defeat  at  Manila,  and 
while  Spain  was  con- 
fronted by  war  at 
home  as  well  as  abroad,  further  inaction  became  impossible,  and 
she  must  defend  herself.  Spain  saw  before  her  the  inevitable 
loss  of  Cuba,  Porto  Rico  and  the  Philippines  ;  and  her  internal 
troubles  became  quite  as  aggravating  as  her  foreign  disasters. 

Although  this  government  has   the  right  and  will   enforce  the 
right  to  seize  and  hold   any  Spanish   colony  until   the  war  ends,  we 


COMMODORE   SCHLhY,  U.  S.   N. 

Commander  of  the  famous  Flying  Squadron. 


238 


COLUMBIA'S  WAR  FOR  CUBA. 


are  not  waging  a  war  of  conquest,  and  will  not  ^deviate  from  the 
policy  laid  down  in  the  Teller  amendment  to  the  Congressional 
resolutions  ;  and  yet,  if  our  flag  floats  over  Cuba,  Porto  Rico  and 
the  Philippine  Islands,  they  will  never  become  Spanish  possessions 
again,  until  Spain  acceeds  to  certain  terms  and  pays  a  heavy  war 

indemnity,  which 
will  naturally  form 
the  basis  of  a  treaty 
of  peace. 

Spain's  deca- 
dence, if  not  doom, 
is  written  on  her 
crumbling  empire ; 
and  no  one  is  to 
blame  but  Spain 
herself.  At  one  time 
she  was  one  of  the 
most  powerful  na- 
tions on  the  globe, 
and  took  a  leading 
place  in  the  equa- 
tion of  civilization  ; 
but  she  has  not  kept 
step  in  the  march 
of  progress,  and  her 
glory  is  fast  depart- 
ing. Montesquieu  in 
his  "Esprit  des 
Lois"  expresses  the 
opinion  that  the  Spanish  government  started  on  its  down-grade  move- 
ment at  the  discovery  and  occupation  of  America.  No  nation  ever 
had  more  splendid  opportunities  ;  but  she  was  demoralized  by  the  vast 
treasures  she  found  in  the  western  world  ;  she  committed  the  most 
flagrant  acts  of  spoliation  ;  her  soldiers  and  sailors,  once  the  admiration 
of  the  world,  degenerated  into  butchers  and  pirates  ;  instead  of  using 
her  great  influence  to  lift  the  peoples  of  her  colonies  into  a  higher 
moral,  intellectual  and  religious  life  she  became  an  active  agent  in 


COMMODORE    HUWH1.L,    I 


HASTENING  TO   THE   END. 


239 


brutalizing  them  ;  and,  infatuated  by  material  wealth,  and  adopting 
the  inhuman  methods  of  mediaeval  times  to  enrich  her  coffers  and  to 
satisfy  the  rapacity  of  her  ignoble  nobles  at  home,  she  drew  her  own 
life-blood.  Failing  to  recognize  the  day  of  her  opportunity,  the 
proud  nation  that  valiantly  withstood  the  mighty  Moors,  became 
her  own  worst  enemy.  There  is  nothing  more  certain  than  the  fatal 


THE   CABINET   ROOM   IN   THE   WHITE   HOUSE. 

Here  the  war  with  Spain  has  been  many  times  discussed  by" the  President  and  his 

advisers. 

result  of  the  conflict  between  energy,  honesty  and  progress  on  the  one 
side,  and  sloth,  dishonesty  and  stagnation  on  the  other.  The  surprise 
is  that  Spain's  colonial  policy  has  not  brought  about  her  total 
decadence  before  the  last  years  of  the  nineteenth  century ;  but  at 
last  she  must  reap  the  harvest  which  she  has  been  sowing  through 
the  ages.  If  the  world  is  to  judge  from  the  many  proclamations  and 


240 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR    FOR   CUBA. 


manifestoes  that  have  been  issued  from  Spanish  authorities  since  the 
signs  of  war  appeared  in  the  skies,  Spain  is  ignorant  of  the  fate 
toward  which  she  is  hopelessly  moving.  None  of  these  state  papers 
are  more  interesting  than  the  one  that  came  from  the  Governor- 
General  of  the  Philippines,  only  a  few  days  before  Admiral 

Dewey's  fleet  ap- 
peared in  the  Ma- 
nila harbor.  This 
remarkable  docu- 
ment reads  thus : 

"  Spaniards  :  Be- 
tween Spain  and  the 
United  States  of 
North  America  hos- 
tilities have  broken 
out.  The  moment 
has  arrived  to  prove 
to  the  world  that  we 
possess  the  spirit  to 
conquer  those  who, 
pretending  to  be 
loyal  friends,  take 
advantage  of  our 
misfortune  to  abuse 
our  hospitality, 
using  means  that 
civilized  nations 
count  unworthy  and 
disreputable. 

"The    North 

American  people,  constituted  of  all  social  excrescences,  have  exhausted 
our  patience  and  provoked  war  by  their  perfidious  machinations, 
their  acts  of  treachery,  their  outrages  against  the  laws  of  nations 
and  international  conventions. 

"  The  struggle  will  be  short  and  decisive.  The  gods  of  victories 
will  give  us  one  as  brilliant  and  complete  as  the  righteousness  and 
justice  of  our  cause  demand. 


GENERAL   N.    A.    MILKS, 

Coininander-in-Chief  of  the  1J.  S.  Army. 


HASTENING   TO   THE   END. 


241 


"  Spain,  which  counts  upon  the  sympathies  of  all  nations,  will 
emerge  triumphant  from  this  new  test,  humiliating  and  blasting 
the  adventurers  from  those  United  States  that,  without  cohesion, 
offer  humanity  only  infamous  traditions  and  ungrateful  spectacles 
in  her  chambers,  in  which  appear  insolence,  defamation,  cowardice 
and  cynicism. 

"  Her  squadron,  manned  by  foreigners,  possessing  neither 
instruction  nor  discipline,  is  preparing  to  come  to  this  archipelago 


A    FAMILIAR   SCENE    AT   CHICKAMAUGA   PARK.      ^ 

Our  soldier  boys  eagerly  welcome  the  arrival  of  papers  from  home. 

with  ruffianly  intention,  robbing  us  of  all  that  means  life,  honor  and 
liberty,  and  pretending  to  be  inspired  by  a  courage  of  which  they 
are  incapable. 

"  American  seamen  undertake  as  an  enterprise  capable  of 
realization  the  substitution  of  Protestantism  for  the  Catholic  religion, 

16 


242 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


to  treat  you  as  tribes  refractory  to  civilization,  to  take  possession  of 
your  riches  as  if  they  were  unacquainted  with  the  rights  of  property, 
to  kidnap  those  persons  they  consider  useful  to  man  their  ships  or  to 
be  exploited  in  agricultural  and  industrial  labor. 

"  Vain  designs,  ridiculous  boastings  !  Your  indomitable 
bravery  will  suffice  to  frustrate  the  realization  of  their  designs.  You 
will  not  allow  the  faith  you  profess  to  be  made  a  mockery  or  impious 

hands  to  be  placed  on  the  temple  of 
the  true  God.  The  images  you  adore 
thrown  down  by  the  unbelief  of  the 
aggressors  shall  not  prove  the  tombs 
of  your  fathers.  They  shall  not  gratify 
lustful  passions  at  the  cost  of  your 
wives'  and  daughters'  honor,  or  appro- 
priate property  accumulated  in  provi- 
sion for  your  old  age. 

"  They  shall  not  perpetrate  these 
crimes,  inspired  by  their  wickedness 
and  covetousness,  because  your  valor 
and  patriotism  will  suffice  to  punish  a 
base  people  that  is  claiming  to  be 
civilized  and  cultivated.  They  have 
exterminated  the  natives  of  North 
America  instead  of  giving  them  civi- 
lization and  progress. 

"  Filipinos,  prepare  for  the  strug- 
gle, and,  united  under  the  glorious 
Spanish  flag,  which  is  covered  with 
laurels,  fight  with  the  conviction  that 
victory  will  crown  your  efforts,  and  to  the  calls  of  your  enemies 
uphold  the  decision  of  a  Christian  and  a  patriot,  and  cry  '  Viva 
Espana.'  " 

It  is  not  surprising  that  there  has  been  a  reaction  in  the  feelings 
of  the  people  of  Spain  who  by  such  deliverances  were  led  to  suppose 
that  their  army  and  navy  were  invincible  ;  and  that  the  throne  at 
Madrid  is  trembling  upon  its  insecure  foundation.  The  streets  of  all 
the  cities  of  Spain  have  resounded  with  the  cries  :  "  Down  with  the 


MAJ.-GEN.  BROOKE,  CHICKAMAUGA. 


HASTENING  TO   THE   END.  243 

Bourbons,"  "  Long  live  Don  Carlos  !  "  "  Long  live  the  Republic  !  " 
and  "  Weyler,  our  Leader !  "  The  demonstrations  in  Madrid  became 
so  threatening  that  an  edict  was  issued,  placing  the  capital  under 
martial  law,  the  Military  Governor,  General  Dababan,  received 
stringent  orders  from  General  Corea,  the  minister  of  war,  for  the 
preservation  of  peace  ;  and  the  cabinet  council  discussed  the  political 
situation,  with  a  strong  inclination  in  favor  of  an  immediate  suspen- 
sion of  the  constitutional  guarantees,  a  step  which  requires  closing 
the  Cortes. 

Another  defeat  of  the  Spanish  arms  will  be  followed,  it  is  quite 
certain,  by  a  considerable  modification  of  the  present  government,  if 
not  a  radical  change  in  the  constitution  of  the  Kingdom  of  Spain. 
Whatever  the  future  may  reveal,  let  not  coming  ages  say  that  America 
failed  to  see  and  seize  the  providential  opportunities  that  opened 
before  her  during  the  last  decade  of  the  nineteenth  century,  and  that 
she  hesitated  to  utilize  the  momentous  and  inspiring  possibilities 
with  which  she  has  been  endowed  by  the  God  of  nations. 

Let  us  hope  for  the  fulfillment  of  the  exalted  prophecy  of  Victor 
Hugo  as  we  stand  upon  the  threshold  of  the  new  century  : 

"In  the  twentieth  century  war  will  be  dead,  the  scaffold  will  be 
dead,  animosity  will  be  dead,  royalty  will  be  dead,  but  man  will 
live.  For  all  there  will  be  but  one  country — that  country  the  earth  ; 
for  all  there  will  be  but  one  hope — that  hope  the  whole  Heaven. 
All  hail,  then,  to  that  noble  twentieth  century,  which  shall  own  our 
children,  and  which  our  children  shall  inherit." 


CHAPTER  XII. 


The  Bombardment  of  San  Juan  and 
the  Cape  Verde  Fleet. 


-•-. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

THE  BOMBARDMENT  OF  SAN  JUAN  AND  THE  CARE  VERDE  FLEET. 

Fire  opened  by  battleship  "Iowa"  —  Spanish  fire  proved  to  be  ineffective  — 
Cervera's  warships  seen  at  Martinique  —  Shape  of  Porto  Rico  —  Discovered  by 
Columbus  —  The  Population  —  Outlook  and  opportunity. 


Dewey's  brilliant  victory  at  Manila,  the  war  with 
Spain  assumed  a  more  serious  and  aggressive  attitude  ; 
and  events  of  the  greatest  importance  followed  each  other 
in  rapid  succession.  Our  government  believing  that  the 
Spanish  fleet,  under  Admiral  Cervera,  intended  to  proceed  to  San 
Juan,  on  the  island  of  Porto  Rico,  and  there  establish  a  base  of 
operations,  Admiral  Sampson's  fleet  was  ordered  to  bombard  its 
defences.  Fire  was  opened  by  our  battleship  "  Iowa,"  and  soon 
the  guns  from  all  the  vessels  of  the  fleet  joined  in  the  attack. 

The  chief  defence  of  San  Juan,  Morro  Castle  (the  same  name 
as  that  at  Havana),  was  soon  destroyed  ;  the  remaining  forts  and 
batteries  were  reduced  to  ruins  ;  other  shore  defences  were  demolished  ; 
and  after  considerable  loss,  the  garrisons  were  driven  to  the  interior. 
During  the  bombardment,  which  continued  at  intervals  for  several 
hours,  there  was  great  consternation  in  the  city,  the  foreign  Consuls 
and  many  citizens  of  the  place  fled  for  their  lives  ;  a  well-aimed  shell 
tore  the  roof  from  the  palace  of  Governor-General  Macias  ;  and 
despite  the  entreaties  of  the  high-spirited  daughter  of  the  Governor- 
General,  Paulina,  the  Spanish  soldiers  turned  from  their  guns,  and 
terrified  by  the  havoc  wrought  by  the  American  fleet,  joined  the 
fleeing  multitude.  Here,  as  at  Manila,  the  Spanish  fire  proved  to  be 
ineffective  ;  only  one  of  our  seamen  was  killed  and  four  were 
wounded  ;  and  while  the  Spanish  loss  is  not  positively  known,  it  is 

(244*) 


244^ 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


supposed  to  be  great.  For  some  days  the  movement  of  the  Spanish 
Cape  Verde  fleet  was  a  mystery,  that  gave  much  anxiety  to  our 
government,  for  it  was  feared  that  it  would  make  a  sudden  descent 
upon  our  North  Atlantic  Coast,  while  our  warships  were  in  Cuban 
waters.  The  echo  of  Sampson's  guns  had  hardly  died  away  before 
San  Juan,  when  it  was  announced  that  the  Cape  Verde  fleet  was 
anchored  at  the  French  Island  of  Martinique,  about  two  days' 


A'STREET  SCENE  IN  THE  WEST  INDIES. 


sail  to  the  southeast  of  Porto  Rico.  As  evidently  it  was  the  pur- 
pose of  Admiral  Cervera  to  reach  Havana  harbor,  where,  backed 
by  the  guns  of  Morro,  his  fleet  would  have  a  decided  advantage, 
Admiral  Sampson  prepared  to  intercept  him ;  and  Commodore 
Schley,  with  the  flying  squadron,  was  dispatched  from  Hampton 
Roads  with  the  view  of  protecting  our  blockading  fleet  off  Havana, 
or  of  aiding  Sampson  in  an  effort  to  crush  the  Spanish  fleet.  But 
Spanish  war  vessels,  like  Spanish  diplomatists,  are  apt  to  disappoint 


THE   BOMBARDMENT   OF  SAN  JUAN.  244^ 

all  expectations.  Two  days  after  Cervera's  warships  were  seen  at 
Martinique  they  were  heard  from  at  Curacao,  a  small  Dutch  island 
off  the  Venezuelan  coast,  where  it  is  supposed  that  they  took  on 
coal,  food  supplies  and  ammunition.  Curacao  is  a  possession  of  the 
Netherlands,  and  as  this  nation  declared  its  neutrality  since  the  dec- 
laration of  the  American-Spanish  war,  it  has  evidently  violated  the 
neutrality  laws  in  permitting  Spain  to  make  a  rendezvous  for  her 
fleet  and  her  supply  ships  at  Curacao. 

The  Spanish  government,  recognizing  its  sacred  duty  to  General 
Blanco  and  his  men,  shut  up  in  the  island  of  Cuba  by  the  American 
blockade,  is  determined,  if  possible,  to  go  to  their  relief  by  securing 
a  landing  at  Cienfuegos  or  some  other  place  convenient  to  Havana. 
But  with  an  American  admiral  north  of  them  and  an  American  com- 
modore south  of  them,  these  ships  of  Spain  will  never  supply  the 
needs  of  the  captain-general  of  Cuba. 

Porto  Rico,  about  which  so  much  interest  has  been  created,  is 
the  smaller  of  the  two  colonies  in  West  Indian  waters,  possessed  by 
Spain.  Its  shape  is  that  of  a  parallelogram  ;  it  has  a  length  of  one 
hundred  and  eight  miles,  a  breadth  in  its  widest  part  of  thirty-seven 
miles,  and  it  lies  about  eighty  miles  to  the  east  of  Hayti,  while  to 
the  westward  are  located  the  group  known  as  the  Virgin  Islands. 
The  coast,  like  that  of  Cuba,  is  indented  by  many  small  bays  ;  a  hill- 
range  traverses  the  island  from  east  to  west;  sugar,  coffee  and 
tobacco  are  the  staple  products  ;  mos.t  of  the  minerals  are  found  in 
abundance  ;  the  climate  is  supposed  to  be  the  healthiest  of  any  of  the 
islands  of  the  Antilles ;  and  from  this  little  island  the  exports  amount 
to  nearly  $20,000,000  annually. 

Although  Porto  Rico  was  discovered  by  Columbus  in  1493,  it 
was  not  settled  until  1510,  when  Ponce  de  Leon  founded  the  town 
of  Caparra,  and  in  the  following  year  he  founded  San  Juan,  which  is 
the  chief  city,  and  which  is  built  on  Morro  Island,  connected  with 
the  mainland  by  bridges.  The  population,  numbering  nearly  one 
million,  is  composed  of  Spaniards,  Germans,  Swedes,  Danes,  Russians, 
Frenchmen,  Jews,  Chinese,  and  a  few  Americans  and  English.  This 
people,  like  all  Spanish  colonists,  have  tried  repeatedly  to  throw  off 
the  heavy  yoke  of  Spain  ;  but  in  these  latter  years  they  have  quietly 
yielded  to  the  inevitable.  But  their  freedom  is  drawing  nigh. 


244/ 


COLUMBIA'S   WAR   FOR   CUBA. 


There  is  light  in  the  Eastern  sky.  It  means  the  dawning  of  a 
bright  morning.  Before  the  new  century  is  born,  a  new  birth  shall 
come  to  the  twin  gems  of  the  Antilles. 

Our  Outlook  and   Opportunity. 

We  have  reached  a  crisis,  the  most  significant  and  momentous 
that  has  faced  our  national  life  during  the  last  generation.  By  the 
hand  of  a  Divine  Providence  we  have  been  led  into  a  War  for  Human- 
ity ;  the  different  sections  of  our  loved  land  are  united  by  the  fraternal 
bonds  of  a  patriotic  union  ;  the  sons  of  Federal  and  Confederate 


A   FUNERAI,  IN  A   MUNICIPAL   COFFIN   IN  THE  WEST   INDIES. 

veterans  are  keeping  step  under  a  flag,  which  is  the  God-given  symbol 
of  human  liberty  ;  a  glorious  and  unexampled  victory  has  crowned 
our  arms  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  globe  from  our  seat  of  govern- 
ment ;  the  horizon  of  our  national  influence  is  widening  in  a  mar- 
velous, if  not  mysterious,  manner  ;  the  echo  of  our  guns  in  Eastern 
and  Western  waters  resound  the  world  around,  as  a  warning  to  the 
enemy  of  freedom  and  as  an  inspiration  to  every  noble,  philanthropic 
sentiment  in  the  human  heart ;  and,  if  we  are  true  to  the  trust 
imposed  upon  us,  the  God  who  reigns  among  the  nations  will  lead  us 
forth  for  the  enlightenment,  for  the  emancipation,  for  the  redemption 


THE   BOMBARDMENT   OF  SAN  JUAK 


of  mankind.  God  forbid  that  our  land  should  fail  to  remember  the 
source  of  her  strength  and  the  secret  of  her  exaltation.  It  is  righ- 
teousness that  exalteth  a  nation.  For  the  want  of  this,  faded  the 
glory  of  the  mightiest  and  most  majestic  kingdoms  of  the  past  ;  and 
without  it  must  fall  our  own  blood-bought  and  blood-consecrated 
America.  May  the  sanctifying  Spirit  of  the  living  God  permeate  the 
whole  fabric  of  our  national  life, — our  government,  our  commerce,  our 
army  and  navy,  our  schools,  our  homes,  and  "  in  that  day  shall  there 
be  upon  the  bells  of  the  horses  '•Holiness  iinto _the _ 


^American  09oman  it\  (Juba, 


By  FRANCES  LINTOR 


(245) 


flN  flMERICfiN  WOMAN  IN  COBfl. 


By  prances   Lhnton. 


Impressions  of  a  two  years'  residence  on  the  island —Havana  and  its  suburbs— The  people, 
their  customs  and  amusements— Cuban  and  Spanish  cookery— The  concerts  at  the 
Hotel  Gran  Inglaterra— The  city  walls  and  fortifications. 

A  PEARL  IN  THE  OCEAN. 

***** 

0  Land  of  Eternal  Summer  ! 

0  Land  of  Eternal  Sun  ! 

This  "Pearl,"  this  "Queen,"  as  they  call  her, 
This  land  is  equaled  by  none. 

1  hear  the  waves  sough  and  simmer, 

1  hear  the  waves  roar  and  moan, 
In  this  sun-land  of  days  so  perfect, 

So  perfect,  the  heart  feels  lone. 

HEAVING  New  York  by  one  of  the  celebrated  "Ward 
Line"  steamers  for  one  of  the  West  India  islands — Cuba, 
the  "Pearl  of  the  Antilles," — about  a  year  before  the 
outbreak  of  this  present  insurrection  there,  the  trip  there, 
living  there,  and  leaving  there,  may  prove  as  interesting,  perhaps,  to 
some  of  our  readers  as  it  was  enjoyable  to  us. 

A  storm  had  been  predicted,  and  storm  signals  were  up,  it  was 
believed,  but  notwithstanding,  our  boat  left  on  time  even  with  signs 
of  the  storm  at  hand;  so,  amid  a  shower  of  rain,  we  waved  adieu  to 
our  friends  on  the  dock,  who  had  come  to  see  us  "  off." 

Down  came  the  rain,  strong  blew  the  wind,  high  rose  the  waves, 
and  we  had  a  storm ;  but  about  eleven  o'clock  that  night  we  emerged 
right  out  of  the  storm  into  clear  moonlight,  the  sea  calm  with  a  few 
ripples,  and  from  our  stateroom  window  on  the  upper  deck,  the 

(247) 


248  AN   AMERICAN   WOMAN   IN   CUBA. 

scene  was  enchanting.  The  rain  had  ceased,  and  as  the  rattle  of 
the  storm  had  gone,  we  sank  to  our  slumbers,  with  the  rays  of  fair 
Luna  peeping  in  upon  us,  on  this,  our  first  night  at  sea. 

Sunday  morning  broke  fresh  and  fair,  many  of  the  passengers 
did  not  appear,  the  effects  of  the  knocking  about,  on  the  previous 
evening,  having  proved  too  much  for  them,  when  perhaps  they  could 
sing  with  the  poet : 

"  Land  me,  oh  land  me  on" any  shore! 
Friends  understand  me,  I  care  no  more; 
I  care  not  how  rugged,  how  wild  be  the  strand, 
Anyhow,  anywhere,  only  on  land." 

Be  this  as  it  may,  all  seemed  to  enjoy  this  balmy  Sunday  morn- 
ing with  its  freshness  and  brightness,  giving  healthful  appetites, 
bright  looks  and  cheerful  greetings. 

In  our  meals  we  perceived  many  Cuban  or  Spanish  dishes,  a 
foretaste  of  what  was  to  come,  but  all  were  relished. 

The  cleanliness  and  neatness  of  this  boat  surprised  us ;  we  had 
traveled  on  many  steamers,  but  this  one  surpassed  all  in  its  sweet- 
ness and  freshness. 

Among  the  passengers  were  a  lady  and  grown  up  son  from  Mon- 
treal, Canada,  bound  for  Mexico  City;  a  medical  man  also  from 
Montreal ;  a  fair-haired,  red-cheeked  German  sat  next  to  us  at  table, 
one  or  two  Americans,  two  lovely  dark -eyed  Greek  maidens  and  their 
brother  ;  also  the  celebrated  Italian  fencer  Pini,  the  rest  were  Cubans. 

Some  of  the  Cubans  on  board  spoke  tolerably  good  English. 
One  young  fellow  made  himself  extremely  agreeable  to  a  group  of 
young  ladies  near  him;  from  our  seat  in  the  salon,  scraps  of  their 
conversation  and  merry  laughter  could  be  heard.  One  of  the  young 
ladies  asked  where  the  piano  was,  and,  proud  of  his  English,  the 
young  fellow  answered,  "In  the  cabbage  room."  A  titter  went  round, 
he  hurriedly  corrected  himself  and  said  "baggage  room." 

In  the  distance  on  this  beautiful  day,  the  northern  coast  of 
Florida  could  be  seen,  and  Indian  river  winding  its  way  like  a  silver 
thread ;  and  on  the  following  morning  the  dim  outline  of  the  coast  of 
Cuba,  lying  like  a  pearl  on  the  ocean,  was  visible.  Many  flying  fish 
and  porpoises  we  saw;  the  former  flying  from  the  crest  of  one  wave 
to  another,  and  the  porpoises  vying  with  each  other  which  of  them 


AN   AMERICAN   WOMAN   IN   CUBA.  249 

could  keep  pace  with  the  boat.  Such  racing  and  darting!  Such 
abundance  of  color — gold,  silver,  green,  blue,  pink,  yellow — all  in 
one,  rich  in  color  are  the  inhabitants  of  the  ocean! 

The  soft,  balmy  southern  air  was  all  around  us,  and  a  lazy  haze, 
which  made  us  dream  day-dreams  of  other  lands  and  other  scenes  too 
luxuriant  and  exuberant  to  be  true. 

On  the  afternoon  of  Wednesday  our  boat  gracefully  curved  round 
the  rock  on  which  the  famous  Morro  Castle  (which  later  on  we 
sketched,  showing  the  fine  large  steamer  "  Ciudad  de  Santander  "  in 
the  distance,  bound  for  Spain)  is  built,  and  up  a  mile  or  so  into  the 
harbor  of  Havana  and  anchored  quite  a  distance  from  the  shore,  as 
all  boats  landing  at  Cuba  do.  Little  bates  of  different  styles  and 
sizes,  some  propelled  by  steam,  others  simple  sail  boats,  were  drawn 
up  in  quick  time  in  close  proximity  to  our  vessel,  waiting  to  convey 
passengers  to  the  shore. 

Friends  who  come  to  meet  any  of  the  passengers  generally  come 
in  these  little  bates,  and  climb  up  the  steps  and  greet  their  friends  on 
board  ;  then  all  descend  these  steps,  which  are  hung  by  ropes  and 
wobble  about  considerably,  making  the  travel  on  them  difficult  and 
dangerous,  as  there  are  always  hungry  sharks,  we  believe,  waiting  in 
the  waters  beneath  for  any  bite. 

Our  bate  and  our  friend  appeared,  and  after  bidding  farewell  to 
our  friends  of  the  past  few  days  we  prepared  to  "face  the  music"  in 
descending  the  quivering  steps,  which  we  did  safely  and  gracefully, 
we  hope,  and  stepping  on  to  the  wharf,  after  bobbing  up  and  down  in 
our  little  bate,  we  make  our  way  to  the  custom-room  to  have  our 
"  cabbage  "  examined  ;  and  leaving  it  in  care  of  a  carter,  to  be  sent  to 
our  destination  later  on,  we  enter  a  single  carriage,  called  in  Cuba 
cache,  and  drive  to  the  Punto,  a  point  on  the  opposite  shore  from  the 
Castle  Morro,  where  a  train  starts  every  half-hour  for  one  of  the 
suburbs  of  Havana. 

We  were  struck  as  we  went  along  with  the  foreign  look  of  streets 
and  buildings,  some  streets  so  narrow  that  two  vehicles  could  not  pass 
each  other  ;  even  the  principal  street  of  Havana,  as  we  found  out 
afterward,  was  only  eight  paces  in  width,  in  fact,  the  eighth  step 
brought  us  on  to  the  pavement  on  the  opposite  side,  which  latter  in 
most  places  is  only  eighteen  inches  wide. 


250  AN   AMERICAN   WOMAN   IN   CUBA. 

The  buildings  for  the  most  part  are  low,  one  story,  casa  baja,  or 
two  story,  casa  de  alto,  and  built  of  stone,  some  rough-cast  or  stuccoed 
over  and  painted  yellow. 

The  stone  of  the  country  is  a  kind  of  coral  formation,  and  also 
limestone  (piedra  de  cat] ;  these  are  broken  in  pieces  and  cemented 
together  with  mortar,  then  all  made  smooth.  The  windows  and  doors 
have  iron  bars  grated  like  a  prison ;  they  form  of  course  a  great  pro- 
tection night  and  day,  as  the  inside'shutters  may  or  may  not  be  left 
open;  and  on  account  of  the  great  steady  heat  of  that  climate,  for 
nearly  the  whole  year  round,  shutters  can  be  kept  open  and  a  free 
breeze  through  the  house  is  the  usual  thing. 

The  typical  house  is,  of  course,  one  story  high,  with  flat  roof 
projecting  in  front  about  ten  or  twelve  feet,  and  forming  a  veranda 
supported  by  pillars  of  stone.  Underneath  is  a  platform  of  tiles 
(ladrillos)  stone  or  brick,  where  the  members  of  the  family  promenade 
or  rest  in  their  rocking  chairs,  and  rock  and  chat  and  chat  and  rock 
for  hours  at  a  time.  These  rockers  are  a  great  institution  in  Cuba  ; 
in  some  houses  we  counted  thirty  and  over.  Generally  these  houses 
run  well  back,  with  one  wide  patio,  or  hall  we  would  call  it.  Either 
at  the  side  of  this  long  extension  or  through  the  middle  of  it,  in  this 
patio  or  hall,  are  the  doors  of  all  the  rooms  on  either  side,  which  are 
divided  into  compartments  by  little  stained  glass  doors,  inside  of 
which  are  larger  doors,  strong  and  thick,  of  wood,  and  almost  with- 
out an  exception  these  are  painted  either  a  pale  blue  or  else  white, 
with  pale  blue  trimmings.  In  fact,  every  house  in  Cuba  has  blue 
paint  somewhere,  and  many  have  the  whole  outside  and  inside  of  the 
houses  painted  a  pale  blue,  with  perhaps  darker  blue  facings,  or  in 
some  cases  yellow,  green  or  pink  facings ;  some  houses  we  saw  were 
painted  a  bright  yellow  and  the  wood  work  a  dark  blue.  One  house 
our  eyes  fairly  gloated  over  was  pale  blue,  pink  around  windows  and 
doors,  the  doors  themselves  green,  blinds  yellow,  and  a  few  minor 
combinations,  which  to  our  stolid,  practical  eyes  were  quite  over- 
powering. 

While  residing  in  Cuba  we  lived  close  by  the  sea.  The  shore, 
or  play 'a,  as  it  is  called,  is  very  rocky,  and  when  a  storm,  or  siclon,  is 
on  hand,  this  beetling  western  coast  of  Cuba  is  a  sight  to  behold. 
Great  yellow-green  waves  dash  up  and  over  the  banos  (bathing) 


AN   AMERICAN   WOMAN   IN   CUBA.  251 

houses,  and  creep  into  the  play  a  till  quite  near  fences  and  houses  and 
threaten  a  little  inundation.  The  wind  is  terrific  at  these  times,  some- 
times houses  being  blown  down.  We  noticed  after  one  of  these  siclons 
a  large  buoy  which  had  done  duty  for  nearly  one  hundred  years,  by  its 
appearance,  as  shells,  stones  and  such  like  were  embedded  in  the 
underpart  and  a  hard  petrified  surface  around  them  and  over  them. 
This  buoy,  with  its  immensely  strong  chain,  had  broken  from  its 
moorings  and  the  force  of  the  waves  had  landed  it  on  the  play  a  over 
a  hundred  feet  in.  We  examined  the  great  pear-shaped  iron  monster, 
and  touched  it  with  reverence  as  I  thought,  Who  constructed  it?  In 
what  age  did  busy  machinists  rivet  these  divisions  together  ?  Not 
one  whit  the  worse  for  all  those  years  of  tossing  and  tumbling  ocean 
wear,  but  the  makers  likely  being  long  ago  laid  away. 

Havana  is  a  city  of  probably  250,000  inhabitants  more  or  less, 
including  Spanish  soldiery  in  large  numbers.  The  latter  are  constantly 
kept  in  Havana  and  in  all  the  forts  around  the  city,  and  in  the  island 
to  protect  Spanish  interests.  The  celebrated  "  ten  years'  war,"  from 
1868  to  1878,  is  often  referred  to  in  conversation,  especially  since  the 
beginning  of  this  revolution,  which  commenced  in  February,  1895, 
and  is  still  raging  to  the  detriment  of  Spain's  peace  and  prosperity. 

From  the  suburb  in  which  we  resided,  the  insurgents  at  one 
time  were  only  fourteen  miles  distant,  and  many  villages  were 
occupied  by  the  rebel  forces.  One  village  called  "Wirra"  was 
entered,  the  church  burned,  and  many  houses  also,  and  people  left 
destitute.  One  colored  family  whom  we  knew,  lost  home,  with  their 
clothing  and  furniture,  and  the  son  who  was  a  bombero  (fireman) 
was  taken  prisoner  by  the  rebels,  along  with  some  thirty  others  and 
condemned  to  death,  but  through  the  intercession  of  the  padre  of 
the  village,  they  were  pardoned.  This  man,  "  Irineo  "  by  name,  a 
fine-looking  negro,  with  soft,  gentle  manners  and  sad  face,  we  after- 
wards saw  and  sketched,  and  received  this  little  bit  of  history  from 
his  own  lips.  A  kind  family  in  our  suburb  helped  "  Irineo's  "  mother 
and  sisters  to  come  there,  and  work  was  procured  for  them.  Many 
strange  incidents  occurred,  and  are  occurring  daily  in  Cuba,  in 
connection  with  this  war. 

One  rather  funny  incident  we  laughed  over.  In  the  village  of 
St.  Nicolas  in  Pinar  del  Rio,  the  rebels  entered,  and,  among  other 


252  AN   AMERICAN   WOMAN   IN   CUBA. 

houses  visited,  the  padre's  was  not  exempt.  They  insisted  he  must 
dance  till  told  to  stop,  also  to  cry  out  "  Cuba  libre!  "  "  Cuba  libre  !  " 
(Free  Cuba)  which  the  poor  priest  had  to  do ;  but  when  allowed  to 
rest,  he  very  pluckily  said,  that  now  as  he  had  cried  out  "Cuba 
libre ! "  they  in  return  should  cry  out  "  Vive  la  Espana !  "  which 
they,  in  their  uproarious  state  did,  with  all  their  might. 

The  rebels  in  their  peregrinations  through  the  country — when, 
sometimes,  they  could  wander  unmolested,  as  the  Spanish  soldiery 
could  not  always  be  everywhere — if  they  met  any  person  whom  they 
found  was  in  any  way  helping  Spain,  took  an  unceremonious  way  of 
stopping  any  further  demonstrations  in  that  line.  One  incident  we 
heard  was  about  a  countryman  who  was  supplying  a  village  with 
milk,  and  on  his  way  to  deliver  it  met  the  rebels.  "  You  must  let 
the  people  suffer  for  the  want  of  milk,  otherwise  you  help  Spain." 
These  words,  if  not  spoken,  were  understood  by  the  poor  man  in  the 
quick  action  they  took,  by  making  him  drink  all  of  the  milk  which 
he  carried.  The  consequence  was  the  man  died.  Another  case  of  a 
man  on  his  way  into  a  village  to  sell  eggs  ;  the  same  proceedings  were 
carried  out,  but  whether  the  man  was  tougher,  or  the  eggs  not  so  fill- 
ing as  the  milk,  this  man  did  not  die.  Many  strange  stories  of 
similar  cases  we  heard,  might  be  taken  with  a  grain  of  salt,  as  we  say. 

A  noted  bandit  was  killed  in  the  beginning  of  this  war.  His 
name  was  Manuel  Garcia,  well  known  and  feared  by  all  plantation 
owners  and  others  for  his  deeds  of  daring.  A  price  had  been  set  on 
his  head  for  years.  He  lived  among  the  mountains  and  woods  of 
Cuba  with  his  companions,  he  their  chief.  His  title  in  Cuba  was 
Rey  de  los  Campos  (king  of  the  fields). 

He  was  killed  in  an  engagement  between  the  rebels  and  the 
Spanish  troops.  He  has  many  successors,  however,  and  many  are 
the  tales  of  their  prowess  which  were  recounted  to  our  wondering 
ears.  Mountain  bandit  stories  of  the  old  world  in  which  we  reveled 
in  years  gone  by,  tales  of  coach  stopping,  ransoms  to  be  paid  for 
wealthy  prisoners,  all  have  their  counterpart  in  the  interior  of  this 
fair  Cuban  land. 

Cuban  music  is  most  enchanting  and  fascinating,  but  difficult 
for  a  foreigner  to  master.  There  is  a  peculiar  charm  about  it.  When 
listening  to  a  Cuban  playing  his  own  music  one  can  conjure  up  all 


AN   AMERICAN   WOMAN   IN   CUBA.  253 

sorts  of  scenes.  Gay  young  caballeros  and  senoritas  in  the  dance, 
fancy  sees  the  rounded  arms  of  beauty  raised  over  the  head,  with 
castanets  between  the  taper  fingers  ;  her  companion,  dark  of  visage, 
red  sash  tied  jauntily  at  one  side,  a  smile  on  his  lip,  their  light  feet 
tapping  the  ground  airily  to  the  music  of  the  mirimbula  wira,  or 
banjo.  The  slow  and  stately  Habanera,  with  its  side-swinging  move- 
ment and  witching  step ;  the  heel-tapping  zapateo's  inexpressible 
charm  ;  the  quiet  vals  de  pais,  which  smacks  of  the  country. 

At  balls  or  club  reunions,  the  Habanera  lancers  and  polka 
are  danced,  but  our  ordinary  American  or  English  waltz  is  very 
seldom  danced.  Among  the  negroes  the  dance  is  very  strange,  several 
muscles  are  moved  independently  from  the  rest  of  the  body.  As  the 
dance  continues,  several  join  and  dance  separately  on  the  floor  at 
the  same  time,  and  the  strange,  queer  movements  rivet  attention,  as 
they  bend  and  twist  their  bodies  into  the  most  fantastic  contortions. 

The  population  of  Cuba  was  supposed  to  be  about  1,600,000. 
The  yearly  yield  of  tobacco  and  sugar  from  the  plantations  being 
worth  somewhere  near  $80,000,000.  The  expense  of  importing 
machinery  for  the  running  of  a  plantation  is  heavy ;  the  amount 
expended  for  that  purpose  on  the  island  yearly  has  been  about 
$30,000,000. 

Before  the  present  war,  Cuba  was  in  a  fairly  prosperous  condi- 
tion, the  yield  of  sugar  and  tobacco  good,  although  many  improve- 
ments were  needed,  still  many  lived  in  affluence  and  plenty. 

On  some  plantations  the  yearly  yield  would  be  often  worth 
$200,000  or  $300,000.  Much  money  was  spent  on  improvements  in 
machinery,  in  fact  there  was  always  something  new  or  more  modern 
to  be  got  every  year  in  the  machinery  line  arid  at  a  great  outlay  too. 
On  one  plantation  sometimes  700  or  800  men  are  employed. 

An  arobas  is  a  measure  or  weight  of  25  pounds  and  a  saco 
(sack)  contains  350  pounds  or  14  arobas.  Sometimes  200  sacos  or 
70,000  pounds  of  sugar  cane  is  ground  in  one  day. 

Sugar  cane  grows  to  the  height  of  loor  12  feet,  and  sometimes  as 
high  as  24  feet;  it  begins  to  be  cut  every  December  annually,  and  the  cut- 
ting and  grinding  and  making  it  into  sugar  goes  on  till  about  the  end 
of  April  or  May.  The  root  of  the  plant  is  left  in  the  ground  and 
grows  all  summer  long  till  December  again,  when  it  is  ready  to  be 


254  AN    AMERICAN   WOMAN   IN   CUBA. 

cut.  Any  piece  cut  off  will  grow.  Cane  is  planted  in  furrows,  and  a 
root  lasts  sometimes  eight  years  and  more,  in  some  cases  even  to  forty 
years.  When  fertilization  is  necessary  it  is  done  in  June  or  July. 
A  planter  often  owns  several  plantations. 

Life  on  a  plantation  runs  gaily  and  contentedly;  they  live  on  what 
the  land  yields,  and  when  meat  is  required  they  have  their  own 
mutton,  pork,  beef,  chickens,  etc.,  and  wild  fowls  as  a  luxury.  All 
kinds  of  vegetables  grow  easily  and  at  any  time  of  the  year. 

The  negroes  and  their  families  who  are  employed  on  the  estate 
have  their  small  houses  in  a  cluster — a  little  village  of  their  own,  a 
store  or  two,  the  carpenter's  shop,  the  blacksmith's,  and  a  post-office 
sometimes.  Then  there  is  the  house  of  the  superintendent  or  admin- 
istrator, the  house  of  the  engineer,  and  the  principal  one,  of  course, 
being  the  house  in  which  the  owner  and  his  family  reside,  the 
latter  seldom  staying  there  the  whole  year  round ;  for  in  April,  when 
the  grinding  ceases,  they  either  go  to  France  or  some  other  place  in 
Europe  or  come  to  Havana,  leaving  the  house  furnished,  ready  for 
their  return  in  December.  When  that  time  comes,  the  young  people 
are  overjoyed  to  get  out  into  the  country  again. 

One  of  the  common  sights  in  Cuba  is  a  man  selling  the  sugar 
cane.  He  sits  on  horseback  with  his  feet  toward  the  neck  of  the 
horse,  as  paniers,  filled  with  sugar  cane,  are  hung  on  either  side  of 
the  horse.  The  cane  when  cut  up  in  little  pieces  is  chewed  and  the 
sweet  sap  is  very  palatable  and  much  liked. 

It  is  difficult  to  obtain  outdoor  sketches  in  Cuba,  on  account  of 
the  great  heat,  the  bright  glaring  sun,  the  dust  and  the  wind,  which 
latter  is  sometimes  very  high. 

In  olden  times  the  city  of  Havana  had  a  high  wall  around  it — 
Muralla  as  it  is  called ;  but  of  late  years  as  the  city  spread  and 
extended  its  streets  and  houses  far  beyond  where  the  wall  used  to  be, 
the  consequence  being  that  the  muralla  has  all  disappeared.  We  saw 
only  a  small  part  of  it  left,  and  soon  that  will  also  disappear. 

Morro  Castle  is  the  principal  fortress  in  the  island,  situated  in  a 
commanding  position  at  the  entrance  to  the  harbor  of  Havana.  A  pic- 
turesque looking  old  fort  is  the  Castillo  de  la  Chorera  about  a  mile  or 
more  out  of  Havana,  nearly  one  hundred  years  old.  The  fort  of  Santa 
Clara  is  on  a  high  bluff,  half  way  between  the  Morro  and  the  Castillo- 


AN   AMERICAN  WOMAN   IN   CUBA.  255 

We  New  Yorkers  must  not  think  ours  is  the  only  Central 
Park.  The  street  on  which  the  Hotel  Inglaterra  is  situated  is 
called  "  the  Prado,"  a  fine  wide,  lengthy  street,  boulevarded,  and  beau- 
tiful shade  trees  on  either  side  of  the  centre  part,  which  is  raised 
about  two  feet  from  the  road  level,  and  that  raised  part  is  used  by 
promenaders ;  between  that  and  the  pavement  on  both  sides  is  a  space 
wide  enough  for  carriages  to  pass  each  other ;  in  the  promenade, 
seats  are  placed  at  intervals,  and  opposite  the  Hotel  Inglaterra  is 
Central  Park,  where  seats  are  arranged,  and  every  evening  when 
the  band  plays,  the  place  would  remind  one  of  our  Mall  in  our 
Central  Park  when  music  is  on  hand.  All  classes  mingle  to  listen  to 
the  music,  many  beautiful  faces  peep  out  from  under  lace  mantillas 
and  black  eyes  flash,  as  all  seem  to  enjoy  thoroughly  the  entrancing 
strains  and  the  gay  crowds. 

A  fine  statue  ornaments  this  part  of  the  Prado,  it  is  the  statue 
of  the  Queen  Isabella  of  Spain.  There  is  also  the  Indian  statue  a 
little  further  on  in  the  Parque  de  la  Indie.  The  Albear  statue,  at  the 
entrance  of  O'Reilly  and  Obispo  streets,  was  erected  in  memory  of 
Francisco  Albear,  who  built  the  fine  aqueduct  and  water-works  of 
Havana. 

There  are  several  fine  modern  hotels  in  Havana,  the  Pasage 
Inglaterra,  Hotel  Roma  and  others,  and  these  are  crowded  with 
visitors  from  all  parts  of  America  and  other  countries,'who  spend  the 
winter  annually  there  on  account  of  the  exceedingly  mild  tempera- 
ture. But  within  the  last  three  years  visitors  are  scarce,  as  this  war 
keeps  many  away. 

Our  visit  to  Cuba  was  of  nearly  three  years  duration,  but  the 
time  flew  by  on  golden  wings  of  happiness  among  the  kindest  of 
friends,  who  were  never  weary  of  expressing  to  la  Americana  their 
love  and  sincerity. 

On  leaving  the  island  one  has  to  get  his  passport  signed  by  the 
Spanish  official  and  also  by  the  American  Consul,  or  English,  etc.,  as 
the  case  may  be  ;  and  a  doctor  appointed  by  government  for  the  pur- 
pose has  to  be  interviewed  for  five  days  in  succession  previous  to 
leaving,  and  the  patient  has  to  be  examined  as  to  whether  or  not  he 
has  had  yellow  fever,  and  if  the  vaccination  mark  has  recently  been 
done.  If  the  patient  has  not  had  yellow  fever  he  receives  a  red 


256  AN  AMERICAN   WOMAN   IN   CUBA. 

ticket,  which  portends  he  has  to  remain  in  Quarantine  at  New  York 
for  twenty-four  hours — the  Quarantine  being  Hoffman's  Island  ; 
but  if  he  has  had  the  fever,  and  has  recent  marks  of  vaccination,  he 
receives  a  white  ticket,  which  means  he  can  sail  right  up  to  the 
wharf  along  with  the  ship's  other  passengers.  In  our  case  we 
received  a  red  ticket,  as  we  had  not  contracted  the  fever. 

We  were  sorry  when  the  time  arrived  for  us  to  leave,  glad  to  get 
home,  but  loth  to  part  with  our  hospitable  and  kind  friends  and 
Cuba's  lovely  climate. 

But  good-byes  and  adios  had  to  be  said,  and  by  the  aid  of  the  little 
bates  we  sailed  safely  up  a  quarter  of  a  mile  to  where  the  large 
steamer  "  Vigilancia  "  was  waiting,  and  getting  on  board  were  shown 
to  our  stateroom.  And  as  the  vessel  sailed  out  of  the  harbor,  passing 
close  under  the  shadow  of  the  huge  frowning  rock  on  which  Morro 
Castle  is  built,  we  looked  up  at  the  tower,  so  far  above  even  the  masts 
of  our  large  vessel,  and  at  the  prison  beyond,  where  many  prisoners 
likely  were  confined,  and  sighed  as  we  thought  of  the  privileges  of 
freedom  they  were  denied,  and  which  we  reveled  in  this  perfect  day 
in  the  springtime  of  this  perfect  climate  of  Cuba. 

The  hospitality  and  uniform  kindness  of  the  Cubans  is  well 
known,  and  once  a  friend  always  a  friend  is  the  rule  and  not  the 
exception  in  this  land  of  romance,  music,  poetry,  beauty  in  form  and 
feature,  heroism,  land  of  soft  ocean  breezes,  hot  sun  beating  down 
on  land  and  sea,  of  far  away  ocean  haze,  under  opal  skies.  Cuba, 
thou  art  indeed  ua  pearl  in  the  ocean." 

On  our  voyage  to  New  York  we  experienced  a  hailstorm  as  we 
neared  Cape  Hatteras,  the  first  touch  of  frost  we  had  seen  or  felt 
since  we  left  New  York.  As  our  red  ticket  proclaimed,  we  were 
detained  at  Quarantine  for  twenty-four  hours,  where  we  were  treated 
most  kindly  and  every  attention  shown  to  us,  even  though  we  were  a 
suspect,  Hoffman  Island  being  only  for  suspects ;  but  if  any  disease 
develops  he  is  taken  at  once  to  North  Brothers  Island.  Glad  we 
were  when  the  doctor's  pretty  little  steam  launch  arrived  next  day 
and  landed  us  at  the  wharf  in  New  York. 


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